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Claude Duet: what Anthropic's proactive agent does, who gets it, and the catch
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Claude Duet is Anthropic's new proactive AI agent for professionals and small business owners. It opened as a research preview on October 21, 2026, with a waitlist for US Claude Pro and Max subscribers. Here is what it does, who can get it, what it costs, and the catch.
What Claude Duet does
According to Anthropic's announcement, Claude Duet is a separate app (iOS, Android and claude.ai) where Claude comes to you first:
- Morning brief: a short summary of the most important items across your connected apps.
- Check-ins: it looks at your connected accounts every few hours and messages you only when something needs you.
- Background tasks: it has its own virtual machine and browser, so jobs keep running when your laptop or phone is off.
- One thread: you type or talk in one ongoing conversation, and it carries over your Claude memory, skills and apps.
It runs on Claude Opus 5.5, and you can't pick a different model.
Which apps Claude Duet works with
Anthropic says Claude Duet can use the more than 6,000 connectors and plugins in the Claude Marketplace. Examples include finding missed Gmail and Slack messages, chasing unpaid invoices in QuickBooks or Stripe, running payroll in Gusto, drafting HubSpot follow-ups and managing a Shopify store. It can also buy things through Stripe's Link wallet, which pays with a virtual card after you approve.
What it won't do
Before it sends, pays, signs or deletes anything, it shows you the exact action and waits for approval. Some actions are blocked even with approval, such as trading securities or moving money between accounts. The Claude Duet help article adds that it can't make calls or text people, and Microsoft 365 isn't available yet.
Claude Duet pricing and access
During the research preview, Claude Duet is included in Pro and Max at no extra cost. Claude's pricing page lists Pro at $20 a month billed monthly ($17 a month on an annual plan) and Max from $100 a month. Team and Enterprise plans aren't included yet.
Invitations go out in waves. When you're admitted, you get one full usage-limit reset, available until November 30, 2026.
Prices at the time of writing this post (October 22, 2026). If you're reading this later, they may have changed, so check Claude's site for today's prices.
The catch: background work eats your usage limits
Claude Duet shares your plan's limits with the rest of Claude, including the five-hour session and weekly caps. Its morning brief and check-ins count too, and bigger jobs like a financial model or a deck take more turns. If you already lean on Claude for chat or coding, you may hit your limits sooner and need to upgrade or buy usage credits.
Who should join the waitlist
US small business owners who already pay for Claude and juggle email, invoices and scheduling across several apps. To try Anthropic's free tools first, read our post on Claude Docs, Slides and Design going free. For another AI spending guardrail, see HubSpot AI spend caps, or compare assistants like Gemini Agent in the tools directory.
FAQ
Is Claude Duet free?
Not on its own. It's included with Claude Pro and Max during the preview, but not on the Free plan.
Can I use Claude Duet outside the US?
Not yet. The research preview is limited to Pro and Max accounts in the US.
Does Claude Duet act without asking?
No. It drafts and prepares work on its own, but asks before it sends, pays, signs or deletes anything.
Sources
- Introducing Claude Duet (Anthropic, October 21, 2026)
- Get started with Claude Duet (Claude Help Center, checked October 22, 2026)
- Claude pricing (checked October 22, 2026)