Anthropic’s Claude Cowork Is an AI Agent that Actually Works

As a software reporter at WIRED, I have tested a lot of shitty agents over the past couple of years. These experiences expose a consistent pattern of generative AI startups overpromising and under-delivering when it comes to these “agentic” helpers—programs designed to take control of your computer, performing chores and digital errands to free up your time for more important things. But the bots I installed on my laptop would struggle to complete even basic tasks. They just didn’t work.

This poor track record makes Anthropic’s latest agent, Claude Cowork, a nice surprise. When I tested it by running it through some basic and intermediate demos the company suggested in addition to my own commands, it worked fairly well—especially for software that’s still in beta. It can do things like organize files into folders, convert file types, generate reports and even take over the browser to search the web or tidy up a Gmail inbox. When it comes to file management and computer interfaces, this tool feels like the start of a pleasant user experience evolution.

Last year, Anthropic nurtured a cult following for its Claude Code tool among developers who loved its ability to understand codebases and run commands, with tech staffers across San Francisco using it for their work seemingly all the time. But most people aren’t members of some buzzy startup’s technical staff.

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