Allow Local Work to be moved to Cloud

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ChatGPT Powered by Codex & OWL Version 26.825.51511 Released Aug 29, 2026 © OpenAI

What feature would you like to see?

I would like to suggest an improvement to ChatGPT Work, specifically regarding the distinction between Local Work (“Runs on your computer”) and Cloud Work.
Currently, when starting a Work from the ChatGPT Mac app, it can default to “Runs on your computer.” Once the Work has been started locally, there does not appear to be a way to migrate it to the cloud. As a result, the conversation, progress, context, and outputs cannot be accessed or continued from the ChatGPT app on an iPhone, iPad, the web, or another computer.
I suggest two improvements:

1. Ask the user to choose Local or Cloud when starting a Work.
   Instead of silently defaulting to “Runs on your computer,” ChatGPT should present a clear choice:
   Run on this computer — local only
   Run in the cloud — accessible across devices
   The interface should briefly explain the consequences of each option before the Work is created.
2. Add a “Move to Cloud” option for an existing Local Work.
   Users should be able to migrate an existing Work from local execution to cloud execution while preserving, whenever possible:

• the conversation and its history
• Work context
• generated outputs and results
• associated files or references
  If some local files cannot be transferred automatically, ChatGPT could simply ask the user to reattach them.
  This is particularly important when the source files are already stored in a cloud service such as iCloud Drive.
  For example, I may start a Work on my Mac using documents stored in iCloud Drive. Those same documents are already accessible from my iPhone and iPad. However, because ChatGPT created the Work as “Runs on your computer,” I cannot access the actual Work, its conversation, or its results from the ChatGPT iPhone app.
  From a user’s perspective, this is confusing: the files themselves are already available across devices, but the ChatGPT Work built around those files is locked to one computer because of a decision made when the Work was first created.
  Suggested UX:
• Do not silently default to “Runs on your computer.”
• Ask Local vs. Cloud when creating a Work.
• Clearly explain the cross-device implications.
• Add a “Move to Cloud” command for existing Local Work.
• Preserve conversation, context, and outputs during migration.
• Allow cloud-hosted files (such as iCloud Drive files) to be reattached or relinked when necessary.
  The ideal workflow would be: start a complex Work on a Mac, then seamlessly review or continue the same Work from an iPhone, iPad, web browser, or another computer.
  I believe this would make the distinction between Local Work and Cloud Work much clearer and would prevent users from unintentionally locking an important Work to a single computer.

Additional information

No response

The issue names no repository files, tests, or entry points. First determine whether Local Work, Cloud Work, and cross-device migration are implemented in this repository; completion would require an explicit Local-versus-Cloud choice and a migration path that preserves the conversation, context, outputs, and file references described.