Fast Company’s latest AI newsletter argues that 2026 may be the year AI stops feeling like simple “chatbots” and starts feeling like real coworkers, highlighting Anthropic’s new Coworker tool — a version of Claude that goes beyond text chats to actively work on complex tasks by integrating with your computer’s files and work apps — and suggesting this shift will reshape how people think about and use AI at work. The article notes that ChatGPT helped define early expectations for AI as a text-based chat interface, but tools like Coworker, plus emerging signals from Google and other companies, indicate a future where AI acts more like a team member or assistant, handling tasks rather than just responding to queries.
