🤖 New Frontiers: ChatGPT Agent Debuts, Windsurf Aligns with Google
Week of July 21st, 2025
It’s Monday, July 21st. Learn how ChatGPT Agent just changed the enterprise workflow game, and see why Windsurf swapped an OpenAI acquisition for fresh deals with Google and Cognition AI.
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OpenAI gives ChatGPT a computer
News: OpenAI just launched ChatGPT Agent—a major upgrade that gives the AI its own virtual computer to handle complex workflows, automate research, and outperform existing benchmarks.
Details:
Agent integrates tools like Deep Research and Operator into a unified workspace for seamless transitions between browsing, coding, and document generation.
It connects securely with services like Gmail, GitHub, and APIs while adapting to interruptions, user input, and multi-step tasks.
Agent achieved top scores in evaluations such as Humanity’s Last Exam (41.6%) and Frontier Math, reflecting significant gains in real-world performance.
Why it matters: Unlike earlier prototypes like Operator, this version can autonomously finish full workflows at scale, interacting with external apps, navigating websites, filling out forms, and executing custom tasks. It marks a significant step forward in the transformation of digital work, setting a new benchmark for general-purpose AI agents as active, reliable partners in modern workflows.
Google wins Windsurf as OpenAI deal falls apart
News: Google will license Windsurf’s tech and hire its CEO Varun Mohan, co-founder Douglas Chen, and several researchers in a $2.4B deal — just weeks after a $3B acquisition with OpenAI fell through due to conflicts with Microsoft’s terms. In addition, Cognition AI, maker of the Devin coding assistant, has acquired the remainder of Windsurf through a $2.4B agreement.
Details:
Mohan and Chen will join Google to lead agentic coding under Gemini.
Windsurf remains independent, now led by interim CEO Jeff Wang.
Microsoft’s refusal to exempt IP from its OpenAI agreement caused the exclusivity window to expire.
Cognition will merge Windsurf's IDE with Devin to enable multitasking, collaboration, and enterprise-scale automation.
Cognition now controls Windsurf's IP, brand, $82M ARR, and $100M+ in capital.
Why it matters: This would’ve been OpenAI’s largest acquisition, and its collapse spotlights growing tension with Microsoft. Google/Cognition’s quick pivot not only blocks OpenAI but also strengthens its hand in the race for AI talent and coding tools, reflecting a broader trend toward talent-first, regulatory-light strategies.
🇺🇸 Coast-to-Coast Open Build with Windsurf
San Francisco and Miami came together for The Collective and Windsurf’s first coast-to-coast Open Build. After a quick demo of the AI-native IDE, teams in both cities spent an hour turning ideas into working prototypes, with Chris Messina stealing the show by live-coding a Raycast extension that pulled App Store data. The energy stayed high as groups exchanged progress, prompts, and gifs, and finished projects ranged from workflow widgets to a fully functional slang-learning app with Stripe integration.
Supported by Werqwise, The LAB Miami, and J.P. Morgan, the night proved that to ride the AI wave, you need to find your tribe and build together. The next Open Build is in the works…
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In the next 24 hours, we’re launching Collective Intelligence with a full-stack lineup: our All Hands, a high-signal Open House (Mon @ 5PM ET) to welcome new collaborators, and Part 1 of our flagship workshop (Tues @ 2:30PM ET) on building real AI agents with Dr. Amir Feizpour. This is the first of many, so be there for day one!
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About Noah Frank
Noah is a founder, innovation strategist, policy researcher, and community builder at the edge of AI. His work blends governance, product strategy, and revenue design to keep transformative tech aligned with human progress.
About AJ Green
AJ Green is a founder, writer, VC scout, chairman, and respected community leader in the AI and startup space. A former athlete turned tech entrepreneur, AJ is on a mission to make AI the great equalizer scaling startups, connecting ecosystems, and turning disruption into opportunity.