Summary
Anthropic has announced Claude Duet, a proactive AI agent that can monitor connected apps, prepare work and continue tasks in the background. Its research preview is beginning with a waitlist for US Pro and Max subscribers.
Anthropic announced Claude Duet on October 21, 2026, opening a research-preview waitlist for US subscribers on its Pro and Max plans. The standalone app for iOS and Android, also available at claude.ai, is designed to monitor connected work apps, bring important items to the user and carry out tasks in the background. Anthropic says actions such as sending messages or making payments require approval first.
The product is built around Claude Opus 5.5, according to Anthropic, and is aimed at professionals and small-business owners. During the preview, it is included with Pro and Max plans and draws on the same usage limits as other Claude activity.
An agent that checks in and works in the background
Claude Duet is intended to do more than answer prompts in a conversation. Anthropic says it can prepare a morning brief from connected apps, check those accounts during the day and notify the user when it judges that something needs attention. Users can also set what they want to hear about and how often. The checks happen every few hours, rather than continuously, to limit how quickly background activity consumes plan usage.
Users can assign tasks ranging from scheduling to building dashboards, forecasts or web apps. Duet carries over memory, skills and connected apps from the user’s Claude account. Tasks can be sent by text or voice in a continuing thread. Anthropic says the agent works in a virtual machine with its own browser, so a task can continue when the user’s phone or computer is off; it sends a notification when the work is complete or needs review.
The company says Duet can access more than 6,000 connectors and plugins in the Claude Marketplace. Examples include finding missed Gmail or Slack messages, checking QuickBooks or Stripe invoices, preparing payroll in Gusto and drafting follow-up emails from HubSpot records.
Approval controls and preview limits
Anthropic says Claude Duet can read, draft and prepare work on its own, but pauses for approval before sending a message, making a payment, signing a document or deleting anything. Some actions are prohibited even with approval, including trading securities and moving money between accounts. Users can disconnect an app from Duet’s access.
The company also describes safeguards for credentials and sensitive information. It says Duet does not directly see passwords or sign-in tokens, and that a dedicated classifier and safety prompt are designed to block requests to share information such as credit-card numbers or government identification. Other sensitive information, including health or personal-finance details, is allowed through only when the user has explicitly instructed Duet to send it.
Anthropic characterises the release as an early version. It says the agent may misread a message thread or misjudge urgency, and that more complex background tasks use more of a subscriber’s plan allowance than a typical conversation. Access begins through a waitlist for US Pro and Max subscribers.