What is Claude Duet?

Congratulations on getting off the waitlist. As far as the announcement describes, there's nothing to install: Claude Duet runs in its own app and works on Anthropic's cloud computer, so the background work happens there rather than on your device. The part you have to do is start it. You message it with a task, and it works through that task on its own, using the apps you've connected. Its morning brief and its check-ins with you are how it asks for your attention, so it will still come to you before anything sensitive happens, such as sending a message, making a payment or deleting a file.

Two things to keep in mind. Anthropic describes this as a research preview, and it has said the agent can misjudge what's urgent, so it's worth reading its check-ins rather than letting them pile up. Also, the connected apps are the ones that matter: anything you haven't connected stays out of reach. I'd check the Claude Duet product page for the current steps to start your first task, since the preview is changing.

I think the bundling question will matter as much as the features. Routine tasks like email triage, scheduling and bill reminders have a history of earning subscriptions when they save people recurring time and hold their data in one place. Cloud storage and streaming both followed that path. Duet is built around that pattern: it carries over memory, skills and connected apps, so the more you use it, the harder it is to leave. Switching costs like that can keep subscribers, but they don't show that people will pay for it.

The bigger uncertainty is that the same routine tasks are being folded into phones, search and office suites that many people already pay for. When an assistant comes free with something you own, a standalone subscription has to prove it does enough more. Duet is also limited to US Pro and Max subscribers on a waitlist, so there isn't yet any evidence of how ordinary users respond to it.