OpenAI has released a sweeping update to its AI coding agent, Codex, expanding where the tool can be accessed to include GitHub and IDE.
The move makes it easier for developers to use Codex where they're already working, rather than opening up ChatGPT, the company said.
The update comes a little over three months after the cloud-based Codex AI agent was first unveiled, offering users the ability to help write features, answer questions about codebases, fix bugs, and even suggest pull requests for review.
The initial version of the Codex agent sat inside ChatGPT, letting users access it via a sidebar in the chatbot.
"Starting today, Codex works with you everywhere you build—in your terminal or IDE, on the web, in GitHub, and even from the ChatGPT iOS app," OpenAI said in an update document.
"Your ChatGPT account connects it all, so you can work seamlessly between your local environment and Codex’s cloud without losing state."
Other updates to Codex
Alongside expanding where the agent works, OpenAI has introduced an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) extension. This means Codex will be included in VS Code, Cursor, and “other VS Code forks”, the company revealed.
Developers will be able to sign in with ChatGPT via both IDE and command-line interface (CLI), avoiding API key setup and ensuring clear access through existing ChatGPT subscriptions.
"Developers can pair with Codex locally and then delegate tasks to the cloud to execute asynchronously without losing state," the post added.
The update also includes a refreshed UI, new commands, and bug fixes, as well as the addition of code reviews in GitHub simply by tagging the agent in pull requests (PRs), the post noted.
"Set up Codex to automatically review new PRs in a repo, or mention @codex in PRs to get reviews and suggested fixes," it said.
OpenAI also directed Codex users to a dedicated website for future updates.
When are the changes coming?
The changes should be available immediately. So far, Codex is only open to paid subscribers, meaning those on ChatGPT Plus, Pro, Team, Edu, and Enterprise plans, with varying limits to the number of messages that can be used.
However, that website notes that logging into Codex CLI or Codex IDE on an Enterprise or Edu account will not yet work, as support is still being rolled out.
The updates follow OpenAI's failed acquisition of AI coding firm Windsurf, which was instead bought by Cognition for $3 billion in July, and comes alongside AWS, Google, and Microsoft, along with GitHub Copilot, all extending their AI coding capabilities this year.
A recent survey suggests that AI is already better than coding than most humans — though issues remain around code quality.
Last month, OpenAI unveiled its latest model, GPT-5, coming nearly two years after the arrival of GPT-4.
But the new edition sparked a backlash, in part because of issues with accuracy and tone of voice, but also because OpenAI initially removed access to GPT-4o, though the company swiftly brought it back.
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