Claude Duet: Anthropic’s Proactive Agent Explained

Update (9 Nov 2026): Claude Fable 5.2 and Mythos 5.2 are out - prices, access and benchmarks are in my Claude Fable 5.2 guide.

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Claude Duet is Anthropic’s attempt to flip the usual chatbot relationship. Instead of waiting for a prompt, Duet reads your mail, calendar and connected apps on a schedule and messages you first when it thinks something needs a decision. It opened as a research preview on October 21, 2026, on iPhone, Android and the web, and the announcement was updated on October 23. We have not tested Duet - we have no access - so everything below comes from Anthropic’s announcement, its help center and the reporting listed at the end.

What Claude Duet actually is

Duet is a separate app, not a new tab inside Claude. Anthropic describes it as a proactive agent: Claude works in the background and reaches out to you, rather than the other way around. It has two main modes.

The morning brief and check-ins

Every morning Duet sends a brief with the most important items from your mail, calendar and other connected apps, plus a suggestion for what to do next. After that it checks the same accounts every few hours and writes only when it decides something needs your call. You choose the topics it watches and how often it checks.

Tasks

The second mode is closer to a classic agent. You type or say what needs doing, and Duet plans the steps and picks the apps. Anthropic’s examples are aimed at small businesses: schedule a meeting, build a dashboard, prepare a sales forecast, catch unpaid invoices and draft reminders, prepare payroll for review, prepare a contract to send. Everything happens in one continuous thread, and you get a notification when the work is done or needs your review.

A cloud computer of its own

Duet runs on its own cloud computer - a virtual machine with a browser. That is why tasks keep going when your laptop is closed. On sites that have no Claude connector, Duet clicks through that cloud browser itself. What it cannot do is show you that browser or let you take over the session.

One model: Opus 5.5

There is no model picker. Duet runs only on Claude Opus 5.5, and Opus decides how much effort a given task deserves. If you are used to switching to a lighter model in the regular app to save usage, that option does not exist here.

How Duet differs from regular Claude

Your memory, skills and connected apps carry over from your Claude account, but not all of your work does. Duet can read what you do in Claude but cannot change it, and it cannot see files on your computer. Anthropic lists the separate app itself among the preview’s limitations and says user feedback will decide how Duet and the main app work together. If you already rely on Claude Desktop for local files, Duet does not replace that.

6,000+ connectors, but no Microsoft 365

Duet pulls from more than 6,000 connectors and plugins in Claude Marketplace. Anthropic names Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Drive, Slack, QuickBooks, Stripe, Gusto, LinkedIn, Docusign, HubSpot, Canva, Calendly and Shopify. Slack works with limitations. The big gap is Microsoft 365: no Outlook mail and no Outlook calendar yet, which rules out a lot of corporate inboxes for now.

Duet can also buy things through Link (Stripe’s wallet) or Shop Pay. Each purchase uses a single-use card valid for that one transaction. Sign-in through 1Password and Shopify’s visual store editor are announced for later.

Approvals and hard blocks

Anthropic draws two lines. First, Duet always stops and asks before four kinds of action: sending a message, making a payment, signing a document and deleting anything. It shows what it plans to do and waits. It can read, draft and prepare on its own, but only you can mark a task as done.

Second, some actions are blocked even if you approve them: trading securities, transfers between accounts and accessing someone else’s account. The model never sees passwords or login tokens; Duet uses the same credential storage as Claude Managed Agents. A separate classifier blocks sharing card numbers and identity documents, and health or private financial data is passed on only on explicit instruction. Anthropic says it ran an internal red team and hired an external penetration-testing firm, and Duet is covered by a public bug bounty.

Weaknesses Anthropic admits

• It may misread a thread or misjudge what is urgent.
• Because it checks in at intervals, something that arrives between check-ins can slip past it.
• Anthropic is still tuning when Duet should speak up and when it should stay quiet.
• It cannot call or text other people. It can send email from a connected account, with your approval.
• Personal errands such as booking tickets work less well. Duet was built mainly for work.

Price and limits

During the preview Duet costs nothing beyond your subscription. In the US, Pro, Max and Ultra cost $20, $100 and $200 per month with monthly billing. Duet is US-only for now, so we quote dollars only.

Duet draws on the same usage limits as the rest of Claude - the 5-hour session limit and the weekly limit - at the same rate as chat. Background work counts too: the morning brief and every check-in use limits. Big tasks such as a financial model or a presentation need many model turns and burn through limits faster. Once you are admitted from the waitlist, you get one full reset of the 5-hour and weekly limits, usable until November 30, 2026. For how limits work across Anthropic’s products, see our Claude Code pricing breakdown.

Who can join

You need all three: a Pro, Max or Ultra plan, a US Claude account and an invitation from the waitlist. Team and Enterprise plans are coming “later”, with no date. Invitations go out gradually by email.

Availability outside the US

Anthropic says Duet is “available in the US only during the research preview”. There is no date or announcement for any other country - not the EU, the UK, Brazil, Turkey or Japan. If you are outside the US, the closest substitute today is Cowork with scheduled tasks. We walk through the signup and the alternatives in How to join the Claude Duet waitlist.

Dots, Muse and the always-on race

OpenAI showed Dots at DevDay on September 29, 2026: always-on agents with their own cloud computer doing what OpenAI calls “proactive research”, with read-only permissions. Yahoo Tech, on October 25, put Duet next to Dots and Meta’s Muse in the race for an always-on agent. The approaches differ. OpenAI lets its agent browse alone but without write access. Anthropic gives Duet more freedom to act and puts a hard stop at the four riskiest actions.

FAQ

Is Claude Duet free?

There is no extra charge during the preview, but you need a paid Pro, Max or Ultra plan, and Duet uses your normal Claude limits.

Can I choose a model other than Opus 5.5?

No. Duet runs only on Claude Opus 5.5, which decides how much effort each task gets.

Does Duet work with Outlook?

Not yet. Microsoft 365 is not available in Duet. It does work in Cowork inside regular Claude.

Can Duet pay or send emails without asking?

No. Sending a message, paying, signing and deleting always require your approval. Trading securities, account transfers and accessing someone else’s account are blocked outright.

Does it keep working when my computer is off?

Yes. Duet runs on its own cloud computer, so tasks continue with your laptop closed. It cannot see files on your computer.

Is Duet available for Team or Enterprise?

Not yet. Anthropic says “later” and gives no date.

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Sources - checked on November 1, 2026

• Anthropic: Introducing Claude Duet (October 21, 2026, updated October 23, 2026)
• Claude Help Center: Get started with Claude Duet (accessed November 1, 2026)
• Claude on X: Duet announcement (October 21, 2026)
• TestingCatalog: Claude Duet (October 21, 2026)
• Yahoo Tech: Anthropic unveils Claude Duet (October 25, 2026)
• The Decoder: OpenAI launches always-on Dots agents (September 29, 2026)
• Claude: Cowork and plan pricing (accessed November 1, 2026)

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