Restore a focused native macOS Codex app - the combined super app has broken basic chat organization

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Assessment

Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Newbie friendliness
25/100
Issue type
Feature
Clarity
Needs clarification
Activity status
Quiet
Tech stack
macos
Domain
desktop

Research direction

The issue names no files, tests, or implementation entry points. Start by identifying the macOS desktop navigation and project/chat organization components; done would require an agreed scope and tests covering standalone-chat defaults, visible project assignment, move-out controls, consistent sidebar actions, and an independent Codex mode.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Description

app enhancement session

Build: 26.727.40816 on macOS

The combined ChatGPT/Codex desktop app has made basic chat and project organization confusing, unreliable, and unnecessarily difficult.

Problems encountered:

  • Ordinary new chats can unexpectedly inherit the currently selected local project.
  • The ChatGPT sidebar displays local Codex chats inside projects but provides no visible move or remove action.
  • Moving a misplaced chat requires discovering that you must switch from ChatGPT view to Codex view and then drag it into a separate Chats section.
  • ChatGPT projects, local Codex projects, ChatGPT chats, and local Codex chats are mixed together without clear distinctions.
  • Controls documented for ChatGPT, such as a chat overflow menu with Remove, do not exist for the local Codex chats displayed in this interface.

This is hostile to basic navigation and destroys confidence that a new conversation will be created in the intended place.

Please provide:

  • A focused, native macOS Codex application instead of forcing Codex into a “super app.”
  • An obvious “New standalone chat” default.
  • A clearly visible project assignment on every chat.
  • A one-step “Move out of project” action wherever the chat appears.
  • Consistent controls across sidebar modes.
  • An option to use Codex without the combined ChatGPT/Work interface.

I am losing patience with the product direction and am seriously considering moving to a competitor.

Feedback reference: 019fb4d3-4401-7c40-8d76-4dedb2dde74f

Dominant language
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