Anthropic introduced Claude Duet on Wednesday, Oct. 21, as an AI agent in an early test phase, designed to act as a personal digital assistant for work. The product takes Anthropic's Claude chatbot beyond answering questions and into handling parts of users' working lives. It reviews information from email, calendars and business software, then sends users a morning briefing and checks those accounts every few hours for items that may need attention.
A work assistant connected to outside apps
Claude Duet connects to more than 6,000 outside apps, including Canva and DocuSign. Its scheduled briefings draw on users' email, calendar and business software, according to Anthropic. The agent also contacts users when it detects something that may require attention. The early test description focuses on work accounts and work tasks, not personal errands.
The tool can make purchases through Link, Stripe's digital wallet, or Shopify's Shop Pay. Users must approve each purchase. Anthropic says Claude Duet will show users exactly what it plans to do before it sends a message or makes a payment. That preview requirement applies to those actions, but some actions remain unavailable even when a user approves them.
Limits on payments and sensitive information
Claude Duet blocks trading stocks and moving money between accounts, even with a user's approval. Anthropic also introduced a new filter intended to prevent the agent from sharing credit-card numbers or government ID numbers. These restrictions set limits on a product that can access connected accounts and take certain actions for users.
The early test combines access to work services with clear limits on some financial activity and sensitive information. Anthropic says users will see a proposed message or payment before the agent carries it out, and purchases require separate approval. The company says stock trading and transfers between accounts are blocked.
Competition and access
Claude Duet enters a field that includes OpenAI's dots, Meta's Muse, Google's Gemini Spark and agents from start-up Instinct. OpenAI's dots debuted one month before Anthropic introduced Claude Duet, according to the provided dates. Instinct raised $1 billion in its latest funding round.
Subscribers to Anthropic's Pro and Max plans in the United States can join a wait-list to use Claude Duet. The company says the agent is available to those subscribers at no additional cost beyond their subscription fee. The product remains in an early test phase, and eligible U.S. subscribers can access it through a wait-list.
- anthropic
- claude duet
- ai agents
- openai dots
- meta muse
- google gemini spark
- digital assistants
- app integrations