How to Use ChatGPT Event-Triggered Tasks

Event-triggered tasks currently require Work and an eligible Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise or Edu account, or an eligible ChatGPT for Healthcare workspace. They are not available on Free or Go plans or in FedRAMP workspaces. Enterprise, Edu and Healthcare administrators must enable event-triggered scheduled tasks before members can create them. [OpenAI: ChatGPT Work and Codex] [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Event-triggered is different from scheduled

A scheduled task runs because the clock reached a chosen time. An event-triggered task runs because a supported app event occurred. A monitoring task repeatedly checks for a change and reports when a condition is met. [OpenAI: Tasks in ChatGPT] [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Use a schedule for a Friday status report. Use an event trigger when a client email arrives, a monitored Slack channel receives feedback or a pull request changes. Use monitoring when there is no supported event and ChatGPT has to check periodically.

One event-triggered task can use multiple event triggers, but it cannot combine event triggers with a time-based schedule. Several matching events that arrive close together may be grouped into one run. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

What you need before setup

1. An eligible ChatGPT account. Event-triggered tasks require Work on an eligible paid plan or workspace.
2. A supported connected app. Connect Gmail, Slack or GitHub under Settings → Apps.
3. Access to the source. Your connected account must already be allowed to read the inbox, Slack channel or GitHub repository.
4. Workspace permission. Managed workspaces may restrict apps and event-triggered tasks separately.
5. A narrow outcome. Decide what ChatGPT should produce and whether it should stop for human review.

If an app is not connected yet, use the ChatGPT app setup guide. The individual Gmail, Slack and GitHub relationship records show the capabilities Connector Scout has verified from current vendor documentation.

How to create an event-triggered task

1. Go to Settings → Apps and connect the supported Gmail, Slack or GitHub account.
2. Open Work on ChatGPT web or a supported mobile app.
3. Describe the event to watch for, the condition that makes it relevant and the result ChatGPT should produce.
4. Review the generated Trigger, Condition and Prompt.
5. Complete any additional authorization the app or workspace requires.
6. Save the task and open Scheduled to review, edit, pause or delete it.
7. Test the first few matching events and tighten the conditions if the task runs too broadly.

You can create or edit event triggers on web and supported mobile apps. The desktop app can show existing event-triggered tasks, but it does not currently create or edit their trigger conditions. Event-triggered tasks are separate from Codex automations. [OpenAI: ChatGPT Work and Codex] [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Write the task as trigger, condition and prompt

• Trigger: What event makes ChatGPT look?
• Condition: Which matching events actually deserve a run?
• Prompt: What should ChatGPT do with the relevant event?

A vague task says: “Watch my email and tell me what matters.” A stronger task says: “When a new Gmail message arrives from a current customer, run only if it asks a direct question, reports a problem or changes a deadline. Summarize the request, identify the deadline and draft a reply for my review. Do not send the reply or change anything in another app.”

The second version limits noise, defines an output and keeps the external action under human control.

Gmail event-triggered task ideas

Gmail triggers can respond to new incoming messages and can be filtered by sender or subject. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

1. Surface customer messages that need action

2. Turn form or lead emails into a review queue

3. Watch for time-sensitive notices

A Gmail listener has continuing access to matching incoming messages. Start with a narrow sender or subject filter and an output that is easy to review.

Slack event-triggered task ideas

Slack triggers respond to new messages in channels the ChatGPT app has joined. Add @ChatGPT to every public or private channel the task monitors. You can narrow the trigger by channel, sender or thread behavior. Direct messages, reactions, edits and deletions do not currently trigger tasks. [OpenAI: Using Slack in ChatGPT] [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

1. Capture client feedback without watching the channel all day

2. Escalate operational blockers

3. Turn decisions into a clean handoff

ChatGPT can connect to only one Slack workspace at a time. The user must have access to the monitored channel, and Slack or ChatGPT administrators may need to approve app scopes. [OpenAI: Using Slack in ChatGPT]

GitHub event-triggered task ideas

GitHub triggers respond to supported pull-request activity in an authorized github.com repository. They can be filtered by pull request, author, title or label and can watch reviews, comments, commit updates or only merges. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

1. Summarize new review feedback

2. Prepare a pull-request readiness check

3. Create a post-merge handoff

The GitHub app must have access to the repository. A trigger can start analysis automatically; it does not mean ChatGPT should be allowed to merge, comment or change code without a separate and verified action path.

What happens when an action needs approval

Event-triggered tasks use the connected account and information allowed by its existing app permissions. They do not expand Gmail, Slack or GitHub access. [OpenAI: Connected apps in ChatGPT]

If a requested action sends a message or changes external data and the current controls require approval, the task pauses until you review it. That is different from a failure: the trigger ran, but the consequential step is waiting for a person. [OpenAI: ChatGPT Work and Codex]

For a first deployment, keep the task read-only or ask it to draft inside ChatGPT. Add write actions only after the trigger and condition reliably identify the right events. The read-only versus write-capable connector guide explains what changes when the assistant can cause side effects.

Limits and current boundaries

• Event-triggered tasks can run up to 30 times per hour and 720 times per day across all event-triggered tasks.
• Several events may be grouped into one run.
• Inactive tasks may pause automatically.
• Active scheduled-task limits are plan-dependent: 5 for Plus, 10 for Business and Edu, and 15 for Pro and Enterprise. Other eligible plans depend on the account or workspace.
• Event-triggered tasks do not run on Free or Go and are not available in FedRAMP workspaces.
• They can be created and edited on web or supported mobile apps, not through the desktop app's trigger editor, Codex CLI or the IDE extension.
• A task can have multiple event triggers, but it cannot combine event triggers with a time-based schedule.
• Scheduled tasks do not support Voice chats or GPTs.
• ChatGPT Health and ChatGPT Finances are not supported event-trigger sources.

Treat these as current product limits, not permanent guarantees. [OpenAI: ChatGPT Work and Codex] [OpenAI: Tasks in ChatGPT] [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

How to test a task before relying on it

1. Test the prompt manually in a normal Work chat.
2. Use a narrow sender, subject, channel, repository or label filter.
3. Start with summarization or drafting, not an external write action.
4. Generate one known matching event.
5. Check whether the trigger, condition and output behaved separately as expected.
6. Review the first several live runs.
7. Tighten the condition when the task creates noise; broaden it only when you can name what it missed.
8. Pause the task if the connected app, team workflow or approval policy changes.

The goal is not to automate every incoming event. It is to notice the small subset that consistently deserves attention.

Sharing an event-triggered task

Eligible event-triggered tasks can be shared. The recipient reviews the instructions and creates a separate copy using their own Work access, connected apps and permissions. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Sharing does not transfer your app credentials, connected-app data, chat history, files, saved memories or workspace permissions. The task title and instructions are included in the shared link, so do not put passwords, account numbers, health information, financial details or other sensitive information in them. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Changes to the original task do not automatically update an existing shared link. A recipient's scheduled copy is also separate from your task. [ChatGPT Learn: Scheduled tasks]

Troubleshooting

The event-trigger option does not appear

Confirm that the account has access to Work and is on an eligible plan. Free and Go accounts cannot create event-triggered tasks. Managed-workspace administrators may also need to enable the feature.

Gmail, Slack or GitHub is unavailable

Connect the app under Settings → Apps and confirm that it is enabled for the workspace. The provider account must have access to the source being monitored.

A Slack channel never triggers

Add @ChatGPT to the channel, confirm the connected Slack user can open it and verify that the event is a new channel message. Direct messages, reactions, edits and deletions are not supported triggers.

A GitHub repository or pull request is missing

Confirm that the connected GitHub app is authorized for the github.com repository and that the saved filters match the repository, author, title or label.

The task runs too often

Narrow the event filter and make the condition explicit. Define what should be ignored, not only what should be reported.

The task pauses after it runs

Review whether the saved prompt asks ChatGPT to send or change something. An action that requires approval pauses until you review it. A task can also pause after inactivity or if its associated chat is deleted.

For broader connection problems, use Why an AI connector may not appear or work.