automation

Anthropic is rolling out computer control capabilities for Claude on macOS, allowing the AI to autonomously handle tasks like file navigation, clicking, and software interactions. The feature launches as a research preview for Claude Pro and Claude Max subscribers, with control available from iPhone via a new Dispatch tool.

Anthropic has added "channels" to Claude Code, enabling Claude to respond to incoming messages, webhooks, and notifications asynchronously without user intervention. The research preview supports Telegram and Discord with custom channel support, running through MCP servers with two-way communication.

Perplexity made Computer for Enterprise generally available to enterprise customers on March 12, claiming an internal study of 16,000+ queries showed $1.6 million in labor cost savings and 3.2 years of equivalent work completed in four weeks. The service integrates with Gmail, Outlook, GitHub, Linear, Slack, Notion, Snowflake, Databricks, and Salesforce, orchestrating tasks across 20 frontier models with agentic internet access.

Facebook Marketplace is rolling out Meta AI features that automatically draft replies to buyer inquiries and generate item listings from photos. Sellers can also now offer shipping on listings and view buyer profile summaries with activity history.

GitHub is positioning AI interaction as a shift from prompt-response text interfaces to programmable execution models. The company announced a GitHub Copilot SDK that enables agentic workflows to run directly within applications, marking a transition toward AI systems that take concrete actions rather than generate text responses.

Anthropic has added scheduled task functionality to Claude Code Desktop, allowing users to set up recurring automation that runs in the background. The feature enables Claude to perform routine developer operations like checking error logs and creating pull requests for fixable bugs at specified intervals.

Anthropic has developed a new measurement combining theoretical AI capabilities with real-world usage data, finding that programmers and customer service workers face the highest exposure to AI automation. However, unemployment in affected professions has not risen, with only early warning signs appearing among younger workers.

Microsoft is previewing Copilot Tasks, an AI feature that automates routine work by running on Microsoft's cloud infrastructure rather than your device. Users can describe tasks in natural language and schedule them to run on a recurring, one-time, or scheduled basis across browsers and applications.

Google has detailed AppFunctions, a system that allows Gemini to directly control and interact with Android applications, functioning similarly to Anthropic's Model Context Protocol (MCP). The capability enables AI agents to automate tasks across the Android ecosystem by providing structured access to app functionality.

Anthropic is rolling out new desktop features for Claude Code that automate additional steps in the development workflow. The update extends Claude Code's capabilities beyond the web interface to provide deeper integration with local development environments.