Anthropic upgrades Claude’s memory to attract AI switchers
Free users can now import their ChatGPT history, eliminating the need to start over with a new AI.
Anthropic is aggressively courting users from competing AI platforms like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini by democratizing Claude's memory feature and simplifying data portability. The company has moved the previously paywalled memory capability to its free tier, allowing all users to enable persistent context. More strategically, it launched a dedicated import tool that uses a specific prompt to extract a user's history and preferences from other chatbots, enabling a seamless transition to Claude without the friction of starting from scratch. This directly targets the 'lock-in' effect of personalized AI assistants.
Technically, users activate memory in the 'settings' then 'capabilities' menu, where the new import tool is also located. The process involves copying Anthropic's provided prompt into their old chatbot, then pasting the output back into Claude's tool. This upgrade arrives as Claude gains traction with tools like Claude Code and Claude Cowork, and follows the recent launch of its more capable Opus 4.6 and Sonnet 4.6 models. The move is a clear competitive play to capitalize on its recent momentum, which includes positive attention for its firm stance on AI ethics regarding military applications.
- Claude's memory feature is now free for all users, removed from the paid subscription tier.
- New import tool uses a specific prompt to extract user data from rivals like ChatGPT and Gemini.
- Aims to reduce switching friction for users who have built extensive history with other AI assistants.
Why It Matters
Lowers the barrier to switching AI assistants, making user data and personalized context a portable asset rather than a lock-in tool.