OpenAI dots alternatives for the UK or under $100 a month
OpenAI's dots is an always-on agent with its own cloud computer. It has no separate price: the first dot comes with ChatGPT Pro (from $100 a month) outside the UK, the European Economic Area and Switzerland, or with a Business Premium seat ($100 a month billed annually, two seats minimum) in all supported regions. ChatGPT Plus does not include it (checked 1 October 2026 against OpenAI's pages). Without a qualifying plan, the closest alternatives are Meta Muse, xAI's Grok Bot and Google's Gemini Spark, each tied to a different subscription. Mover OS is also an option if you want help following your own plan more than errands done for you: $49 once, it runs inside the coding agent you already use, such as Claude Code or Codex, keeps plain files on your own machine, plans your day, flags drift from your plan, and stops when the agent closes.
Last verified 30 September 2026.
Which alternative fits you?
Try Meta Muse
Worth a look if you want a free-to-start tier (up to 100 million tokens a week) rather than requiring a paid subscription tier, and you're in the US or Canada.
Try Grok Bot
A good fit if you're already paying for SuperGrok or a Grok Bot-eligible Cursor plan and want an agent focused more on coding and team workflows than household errands.
Try Google Gemini Spark
It suits you if you're already a Google AI Ultra or Pro subscriber and want deep, native Gmail, Docs and Workspace integration rather than the 4,000-app plugin ecosystem dots relies on.
Try Mover OS
Consider it if what you actually want is something that remembers your own plan and pushes back when you drift from it, inside the Claude Code, Codex or Gemini CLI you already have, rather than a cloud computer that acts for you. Mover is the wrong choice if what you're after from dots is the always-on cloud computer itself: Mover has no computer or browser of its own and does not run while you're not in a session.
How do the alternatives compare?
| Fact | OpenAI dots | Meta Muse | Grok Bot | Google Gemini Spark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maker | OpenAI source | Meta source | xAI (SpaceXAI) source | Google (Gemini app / Google Labs) source |
| Launch date | 29 September 2026 (teased 15:00 BST, revealed 18:03-18:06 BST) source | 8 September 2026 (US); Canada 18 September 2026 source | Early beta 11 August 2026; expanded to more plans 21 and 26 August 2026; "Team Bots" (shared agents for a team) launched around 28 September 2026 source | Announced 19 May 2026 at Google I/O; trusted testers the same week; Google AI Ultra beta the following week; macOS app 30 June 2026; expanded to Google AI Pro subscribers in 160+ additional countries 30 July 2026 source |
| Price and plans | No separate price. Included at no extra cost with ChatGPT Pro (Pro 100 at $100 a month, Pro 200 at $200 and Pro 500) and Business Premium. Enterprise, Edu and Healthcare get an opt-in beta a workspace admin enables. The Plus plan does not get it. source | Free for up to 100 million tokens per week. Power $20/month and Maximum $100/month buy more usage, not extra features. source | No standalone Grok Bot price. Bundled into SuperGrok ($30/mo), SuperGrok Plus ($100/mo, reported), SuperGrok Heavy ($300/mo, reported, xAI's own pricing pages return HTTP 403 to automated checks), Cursor Pro ($20/mo), Cursor Pro+ ($60/mo), Cursor Ultra ($200/mo), and Cursor Teams Standard/Premium ($40 / ~$120 per seat). Each eligible plan gets a weekly Grok Bot usage allowance (size unpublished); heavier use bills on demand. source | Required a Google AI Ultra subscription (reported ~$100/mo) at launch; expanded 30 July 2026 to Google AI Pro subscribers in 160+ additional countries. No separate Spark-only fee; it rides the Gemini app subscription. source |
| Availability | Pro users in markets outside the European Economic Area, Switzerland and the UK; Business Premium in all supported ChatGPT regions, which includes the UK (OpenAI's dots docs: "Business Premium: Rolling out worldwide"); Enterprise as a beta a workspace admin switches on. Texting a dot is a beta limited to Pro users in the US. source | US and Canada only. Explicitly NOT available in the UK, Ireland or the EU as of 1 October 2026. source | By plan: SuperGrok Plus, SuperGrok Heavy, Cursor Pro+, Cursor Ultra, and Cursor Teams Standard or Premium. source | US first (Google AI Ultra, 18+); expanded to Google AI Pro subscribers in 160+ additional countries from 30 July 2026. Exact country list not published in sources read. source |
| Platforms | ChatGPT desktop, web and mobile; Slack and Teams; texting "coming soon". Initial setup needs the desktop app or a desktop browser; mobile is for messaging your dot only after setup. source | iOS, Android, muse.ai (web), directly in WhatsApp, and a Mac app (no Windows app). Coming to Meta AI glasses. Standalone hardware "Muse Charm" expected US-first, December 2026. source | Grok app (desktop, iOS), and via a required Cursor account for the Cursor-bundled routes. Team Bots reachable in Slack or the Grok Bot interface. source | Gemini web and mobile app, a macOS desktop app (from 30 June 2026), and a dedicated Gmail address you can email directly. source |
| Underlying model | GPT-6 Astra (Astra itself shipped 3 September 2026, three and a half weeks before dots; dots is a new product on the existing model, not a new model) source | Meta's own model, internally "Avocado" (Muse Spark), for nearly every session. One independently-exported session showed a subagent task routed server-side to a model tagged azure/muse-special, likely an OpenAI model served via Azure; this is Meta's own infrastructure choice, not a user-facing way to plug in an outside account. source | Grok 4.6 ("Same 1.5T base as 4.5", per third-party aggregation; API priced at $2 input / $6 output per million tokens) source | Gemini 3.5 Flash, using the Google Antigravity agent harness source |
| Where memory lives | Not spelled out as a dots-specific memory system in the launch post. "The more you work together, the more your dot learns your preferences." Whether it rides ChatGPT's general Memory system (Settings > Personalization > Memory, viewable/editable/deletable there) is inferred, not confirmed by OpenAI's dots copy. source | Yes, named and documented: MEMORY.md plus dated files under memory/ and memory/bank/, inside the user's isolated cloud VM. "You can find out what Muse remembers about you at any time by asking directly, or by viewing files like your MEMORY.md." A named "Forget skill" removes specific topics/people; a full reset deletes all Muse data. source | On xAI's cloud: a Bot keeps preferences, role context and summaries of prior work, and your Bots share one cloud computer for files and browser sessions. source | No distinct named memory file system found; a reviewer describes it drawing on Gemini's cross-product "Personal Intelligence" context rather than a separate Spark memory store. source |
| Always on | Yes. "They have their own cloud computer, learn from feedback over time, and can work towards your goals 24/7." source | Yes. "Muse keeps things moving after you close the app. It monitors, follows up, and sends a notification when something needs your attention." source | Yes. "Persistent agents on a shared computer" that keep working after you stop looking; the distinguishing line used against it: "Grok thinks, Bot acts." source | Yes. "Give it a task and it works in the background 24/7, even if your phone and laptop are turned off... It runs on dedicated virtual machines on Google Cloud." source |
| Own computer / browser | Yes. Each dot works on its own cloud computer and browser, inspectable any time; can also be granted permission to use the user's own laptop directly. source | Yes. Runs in "Muse Secure VM", a dedicated isolated cloud VM per user, with its own browser. A separate "Sentinel" agent is the sole permission authority for network egress and connector actions. source | Yes. Described consistently across sources as having its own cloud computer; got browser-based App Store submission automation as a demoed capability. source | Yes. Runs on a dedicated Google Cloud VM; gained direct Chrome browsing (with the user's permission, using logged-in accounts and saved passwords) from 30 July 2026. source |
| Integrations | "Through our ecosystem of plugins, they can readily connect to over 4,000 apps" (the existing ChatGPT plugin/app ecosystem, not a new developer surface). No public dots-specific API or SDK found. source | Gmail, Google Calendar, HealthEx, OpenTable, Facebook, Instagram, Peloton, Plaid/Finances, Function Health, Google Contacts at launch; Walmart, Best Buy, Sephora, Instacart, Notion, GitHub, Gap, Wayfair, Expedia, Granola, Shopify (via Shop Pay), PayPal added at Meta Connect (23 Sep). Checkout runs through Link by Stripe. source | Team Bots: "Give your Team Bot the skills, plugins, and credentials it needs for its role." Individual Grok Bot: app/plugin ecosystem not itemized in sources found beyond the App Store automation example. source | Gmail, Google Docs, Slides and Workspace tools out of the box; Canva, OpenTable, Instacart, Dropbox, Zillow Rentals; Google Tasks and Keep (added Jun 2026); custom MCP server support (added Jun 2026). source |
| Trains on your data by default | "We don't use content from ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, or Edu workspaces to improve our models by default. On personal ChatGPT plans, you can control whether dots' conversations and work are used to improve our models." The launch post gives no default setting for personal (Pro) plans. source | ON by default at first use. Toggle under Settings > Data controls turns it off. Excluded from ad targeting regardless of this setting. source | Follows your Cursor account and privacy settings, and Grok Bot needs cloud data storage (Cursor's Legacy Privacy Mode is not supported). source | Yes. Spark works only with Keep Activity on, Keep Activity is on by default for adults, and Google says it uses that activity to improve its services, including training generative AI models. Turning Keep Activity off stops future chats being used. source |
Each of the 44 cells in this table links to its source. A row is left out when no source answers it for every product shown.
Mover OS is a different kind of tool: files your own AI agent reads, $49 once, with no cloud computer or messaging reach. dots vs Mover OS sets the two side by side.
What do users say about dots?
“OpenAI's mascot looks like the Grok bot. When big tech copies each other, it's called 'learning from the competition.' When small apps do it, it's called 'copycat.'”
@alexcooldev, OpenAI dots
“Can it control my machine though? My problem is that I don't have the luxury of connecting all of my work systems to outside systems. So I have to work from my desktop.”
@appealstoheaven, OpenAI dots
“I really hoped I would be impressed... Sadly Dots is pretty underwhelming. Everything they 'do' I already have ChatGPT doing.”
@MefreeNTR2098, OpenAI dots
“'Included in your Pro plan' - Pro 100 or Pro 200?”
@rayanabdulcader, OpenAI dots
Common questions
Is dots available on the ChatGPT Plus plan?
No, not as of 29 September 2026. OpenAI's own launch post states dots roll out today to Pro and Business Premium users in eligible markets, with Enterprise, Edu and Healthcare getting an opt-in beta. Plus is explicitly not included; OpenAI says only that it plans to expand access "soon," with no date given.
What does dots cost on top of my ChatGPT subscription?
Nothing extra for the dot itself. Conversations with your dot don't count toward your normal ChatGPT usage limits, though tasks you ask it to run in Codex or ChatGPT Work do count as usual. A separate, unpublished usage allowance exists and is temporarily extended for dots' first month.
Does dots have its own developer API?
No public API or SDK for building your own dot was found anywhere in OpenAI's official materials as of this research. A separate, pre-existing Agents API (in preview since 10 September 2026) is described as "the same tech powering all our cloud agents, including dots," which is the closest thing to a developer path, but OpenAI has not said this lets you build a literal dot.
Which alternative is free to try without a paid plan?
Of the always-on, own-computer style agents compared here, Meta Muse is the only one with a genuine free tier (up to 100 million tokens a week) that doesn't require a paid subscription first, and only in the US or Canada.
Weighing dots against a tool that holds you to your own plan? Mover OS: $49 once, plain files on your own machine, inside the AI you already use.