OpenAI Launches Dots Against Meta's Muse as Apple Tightens Data Controls

Meta's Muse offers to do more than answer questions. It can send emails and buy things online, according to The Verge, which reported that the agent could be effective for users willing to trust it with access.

That offer has found an audience. By September 30, Forbes reported that Muse had reached five million downloads. But delegating tasks also brings a practical problem: an agent needs access to accounts and information to act on its user's behalf.

On September 30, Al Jazeera reported OpenAI's launch of Dots as a rival to Muse and Google's Gemini Spark. The Hindu reported that Dots was included at no additional cost in ChatGPT Pro, Business Premium and Enterprise subscriptions. That means access is bundled with selected paid plans, rather than offered without a subscription.

Meta was expanding its own offer at the same time. On September 30, TechRadar reported a new small-business plan for Muse, with Instagram, Facebook and third-party connections. Most use cases should be free, the report said, with paid plans providing more tokens.

The same day's coverage also exposed a dispute over permissions. Tom's Hardware reported allegations that Muse accessed personal data users had forbidden it to read. The Next Web reported Meta's denial that the agent read a journalist's private messages without permission. Meta said reading Messages on a Mac requires users to enable two separate settings. The supplied coverage does not resolve that disagreement.

On October 2, Apple announced plans for additional controls around macOS Full Disk Access. According to TechCrunch, Apple warned that increasingly capable agents make broad access to files, messages, mail and browsing history riskier. 9to5Mac reported that Apple had not shared the specifics of its changes.

Meta also moved beyond the app. On October 2, Digital Trends reported that it had released open-source tools for Muse gadgets using ESP32 and Raspberry Pi hardware, alongside its own Home Link smart-home device. On October 3, CNBC reported shopping partnerships with Walmart, Gap, Sephora, Expedia, Wayfair, Best Buy and others.

Muse has an established audience as Dots enters the contest. On October 2, The Next Web reported figures from reviewed internal data showing more than three million weekly Muse users and more than one million daily users. Those usage figures measure something different from downloads: people actually prompting the agent.

Pricing is another dividing line. The Verge framed Dots' challenge as competing with a free rival, while the reported plans show a more qualified picture: Dots is bundled into selected paid subscriptions, and Muse combines largely free use with paid options.

Trust remains unsettled. Meta disputes the private-message allegations, and Apple has announced broader safeguards rather than detailed rules. Neither development establishes that Dots offers stronger privacy protections than Muse.

Apple's promised Full Disk Access controls are the clearest pending change. The details will matter for anyone granting an agent broad access to a Mac, but 9to5Mac reported that those specifics had not yet been disclosed.

Shopping access is also uneven. DEV Community reported on October 2 that Muse could no longer shop on Amazon, while CNBC reported partnerships with other retailers the following day. Whether agents can complete tasks depends not just on their capabilities, but on which services let them act.