Read anyway

On August 20, 2026, ChatGPT gained a plugin that can search a Mac user's Messages history (iMessage, SMS and RCS) once that user says yes. OpenAI says it only reads when asked. The people on the other end of those threads were never asked at all. This is what one yes does to everyone else.

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Said yesExposed anywayUntouched

Change the assumptions

Every number on this page recalculates as you move these.

Share of people who say yes
People each person texts with

Not everyone in the address book, just the people you have actually exchanged messages with.

Population
Population in millions
Time for adoption to reach that share

Adoption follows an S-curve: slow at first, then most people join in the middle, then it levels off.

Typical group chat size

A group chat is exposed if any one member said yes.

How fast it spreads

The thin line is the share of people who opted in. The thick line is the share of people with at least one conversation exposed. The gap between them is the whole story.

Opted inExposed

Half of everyone exposed

90% of everyone exposed

99% of everyone exposed

Once adoption settles

What the end state looks like at the opt-in share you chose.

of all one-on-one threads are exposed. A thread only needs one side to say yes.

other people are exposed by each person who says yes.

The math, in plain terms