On May 22, during its regular ‘Codex Thursday’ update, OpenAI introduced several new features. The highlight is ‘Locked Use’: Codex can now control desktop applications even when the Mac screen is turned off and the device is locked. Users can remotely initiate and sustain tasks via the Codex Mobile app on their smartphones. According to OpenAI, this feature works solely within active, trusted control sessions and includes multiple safeguards — such as short-lived authorization tokens, screen obscuration displays, automatic re-locking upon local input detection, and manual unlock fallback options. Also worth noting is the newly launched Appshots feature (for macOS): by pressing both Command keys simultaneously, users can instantly send a screenshot of the currently active app window along with its textual context to Codex, eliminating the need for manual copy-pasting.
Additionally, Goal Mode has been upgraded from an experimental feature to a fully supported version, now available across the Codex App, IDE plugins, and CLI. It enables Codex to autonomously carry out tasks centered around a single objective for hours or even days. Meanwhile, OpenAI’s latest cutting-edge model, GPT-5.5, has also been integrated into Codex, making it ideal for complex programming, computer manipulation, and research-related workflows. Currently, over 2 million users engage with Codex weekly, and OpenAI continues rolling out updates every Thursday.