ChatGPT can now take audio files as conversation attachments. OpenAI's release notes dated the change October 6, 2026, and the supporting help article says audio uploads are available with paid ChatGPT subscriptions and workspaces — the free plan is excluded at launch.

Nine formats are supported: WAV, MP3/MPEG, OGG/OGA, audio-only WebM, PCM, FLAC, AAC, M4A and audio-only MP4, with single files capped at 512 MB. OpenAI warns transcripts may contain errors, speaker identification can be unreliable, and very long recordings may be processed in sections or time out — users should check consequential details against the original recording.

The pitched uses are practical: summarize a meeting with its decisions and next steps, ask what was said about a deadline, pull requirements from an interview or lecture, or turn a recording into a follow-up email draft. It lands one month into the agent race where every lab is racing to make old recordings searchable.