Hey 👋

Anthropic is not wasting any time in 2026.

Last week they launched Cowork, a new tool that lets Claude work directly with files on your computer. You point it at a folder, give it a task, and let it figure out the steps. The result is an assistant that can turn a pile of receipts into an expense report, pull data from scattered PDFs into one spreadsheet, or draft a presentation from your meeting notes without constant hand-holding.

Anthropic has not done a great job showing what is actually possible here. Their demos focus on organizing downloads and tidying up your desktop, but that barely scratches the surface. This is about having an assistant that can do the tedious work you have been putting off, the kind of tasks that are not hard, just time-consuming.

The Wall Street Journal published a feature calling Claude Code "amazing and also scary" as AI coding tools reshape how work gets done. Claude Cowork brings those same capabilities to everyone, no programming required. It is now one of the most capable AI tools for producing real work in Excel spreadsheets, Word documents, and PowerPoint presentations.

The gap right now is between what these tools can do and how easy they are to use. Getting Claude Code set up still requires comfort with a terminal. Cowork is simpler, but you need to know what to ask for and how to structure the work. That is why we are building the GritAI Agent, our own tool on top of Claude Code designed for teams who want tailored workflows without the learning curve. We will have more to share soon!

But that was not all the AI news last week. Let us dive in 🏄

Claude, Cowork, and Claude Code. What is what? 🤔

If you know ChatGPT but not Claude, here is a quick primer.

​Claude is Anthropic's AI assistant, similar to ChatGPT. You chat with it at claude.ai or in the mobile app.

​Claude Code is a command-line tool for developers. It lives in your terminal, understands your codebase, and can write and edit code across multiple files. Think of it as an AI programmer that works alongside you.

​Cowork is the new one. It brings Claude Code capabilities to non-developers by letting Claude work directly with files on your computer. No terminal required.

Getting Started with Claude Code 🧑‍💻

We just kicked off a Claude Code video series. The first episode gets you installed in 5 minutes, the second covers the shortcuts and commands you will use every day.

Claude Code is not just for coding. It can read files, run commands, and help with real work end to end. It is also more powerful than Cowork, so we encourage non-coders to give it a try!

We also plan to launch a Claude Code for Beginners course for a limited group soon. If you are interested in an early bird deal, reply to this email and let us know.

AI Pulse 🚨

A bite-sized curation of this week's most important AI news.

🤖 Anthropic launched Cowork, a Claude Desktop agent that works directly in your files without any coding required. Available now for Claude Pro and Max subscribers on macOS.

🧪 Anthropic expanded Anthropic Labs, putting Mike Krieger (Instagram co-founder) in charge of experimental products. This is the team behind Claude Code, MCP, and Skills.

🍎 Apple announced a multiyear partnership with Google to use Gemini models for Apple Foundation Models. Upgraded Siri expected in early 2026.

🤖 Cursor shared findings from running hundreds of coding agents for weeks to build a web browser. GPT-5.2 outperformed Opus 4.5 on longer autonomous work, and prompts mattered more than expected.

🛒 Google launched Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), an open standard for AI-powered shopping. Built with Shopify, Etsy, Walmart, Target, and major payment processors.

🧠 Google introduced Personal Intelligence in Gemini, connecting your Gmail, Photos, YouTube history, and more for personalized AI assistance. U.S. only for now.

💻 OpenAI released GPT-5.2-Codex to the Responses API, the same model used in Codex. Strong at complex long-running tasks like building features, refactoring code, and finding bugs.

🔧 Claude Code added tool search, letting Claude find the right tool from your MCP server without loading everything into context. Also now supports adding comments when accepting permissions.

🔄 Claude Code shipped automatic context clearing when accepting a plan. This keeps Claude on track longer and improves plan adherence.

🔌 Ollama added Anthropic API compatibility, letting you run Claude Code with local models via Ollama.

🛠️ GitHub Copilot launched support for OpenCode, allowing developers with paid Copilot subscriptions to authenticate into OpenCode.

📘 Vercel released React Best Practices, a skill with documentation on building better interfaces with AI coding agents.

💬 Slack upgraded Slackbot with AI agent capabilities. It can now create canvases, search messages, access uploaded documents, and more.

💵 OpenAI announced ChatGPT Go, a cheaper subscription tier at $8 per month, and confirmed ads are coming to the free and Go tiers.

🧠 Anthropic is rumoured to be developing Knowledge Bases for Claude Cowork, a new concept of topic-specific memories that Claude will automatically manage.

🤝 Manus partnered with Similarweb to integrate web traffic data. AI agents can now pull real-time analytics on any website, useful for market research, competitor analysis, and validating business claims.

🔮 Sequoia Capital declared that 2026 is the year of AGI, with long-horizon agents set to perform complex tasks autonomously.

📖 Google Antigravity launched agent skills documentation, introducing reusable packages that enhance agent capabilities with specific instructions.

🛠️ Chris Tate introduced json-render, a tool that lets you prompt dashboards and apps while safely constraining output to a defined component catalog. We have started building with this and it feels like a glimpse of the future with on-demand software interfaces.

💼 Pragmatic Engineer published a deep dive on what happens when AI writes almost all code, exploring how developer and PM roles are changing.

📊 LinkedIn released its 2026 Jobs on the Rise report highlighting the 25 fastest-growing roles in the U.S., with AI roles featuring prominently.

🚫 Malaysia and Indonesia blocked Grok over non-consensual sexual deepfakes, becoming the first countries to take action against the AI tool.

🏥 Anthropic and OpenAI both went after healthcare last week. Anthropic launched Claude for Healthcare with HIPAA compliance. OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT Health with Apple Health integration.

🔄 Ralph-Wiggum is trending on X. The Claude Code plugin lets the AI agent run for hours instead of minutes by looping through a task until it is actually done.

Claude Code Community Event 🙏

The response to our next Claude Code Oslo Meetup has been wild. We opened signups last week and were over-subscribed in less than 24 hours. By 48 hours, more than 100 people were on the waiting list.

You can still sign up. We are adding people from the waitlist as we speak. If you signed up and cannot make it, please take yourself off the list so someone else can join.

📅 January 21, 4:00 PM - 8:00 PM

📍 Mesh Youngstorget, Oslo

​Sign up for the Claude Code Meetup​

Organized by local Claude Code enthusiasts in collaboration with Mesh and supported by Anthropic.

What are Skills? 🛠️

​Skills are like plugins for AI agents. They package specialized knowledge, workflows, and tools that help Claude (or other AI agents) do specific tasks better.

Think of them as instruction manuals the AI reads before tackling a job. A "Brand Guidelines" skill teaches Claude your company's colors, fonts, and tone of voice. An "Expense Report" skill teaches it your company's format and categories. A "Meeting Notes" skill formats notes the way your team likes them. Skills work across regular Claude, Claude Code, and Cowork.

We expect skills to become a standard way to customize AI assistants across most tools soon. ChatGPT is also slowly moving in this direction.

GritAI Accelerator Program 🚀

We see tools like Claude Code and Cowork as the next wave of value creation with AI for teams and businesses. In the AI Accelerator, we cover these tools, best practices, and techniques, including how to use Claude Code for non-coding tasks. Participants also get early access to the GritAI Agent, our own tool built on top of Claude Code.

We still have a few spots open for our accelerator starting soon. If you want hands-on help turning AI into real results this year, apply now.

Secure your spot in the first cohort. Limited to 5 companies. 👇

Work Smarter With AI 🧰

2025 was about learning to work with ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. 2026 is about something else entirely.

Join our AI Community. Practical, fast, and built for people who want to get more value from AI. Learn the skills and workflows that help you work smarter, automate tasks, and bring ideas to life with AI tools.

​Join the GritAI Community​

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