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GenAI Tool Features

Features last updated 8 October 2025

The University of Oxford is supporting various generative AI tools for use by staff and students, including ChatGPT Edu, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot. These tools have differing features accessible through University accounts. This page states which features you should expect to see when you access supported tools via your SSO-linked accounts.

ChatGPT Edu

Within the University's ChatGPT Edu workspace, which all staff and students now have access to through individual SSO-linked ChatGPT Edu accounts, access to features will be subject to internal governance and decision-making based on business need.

For guidance on getting started with ChatGPT Edu, see our ChatGPT Edu Onboarding Guide.

Following the rollout of ChatGPT Edu in September 2025, you can expect to have access to the following features via your SSO-linked ChatGPT Edu account:

ChatGPT models:

  • GPT-5
  • GPT-5 Thinking
  • GPT-4o
  • GPT-5-mini

Specific tools within ChatGPT Edu:

  • Study mode
  • Image generation
  • Web search
  • Canvas
  • Voice mode

If you already have a (non-Edu) ChatGPT account or a ChatGPT Edu account you accessed via University credentials (including department/college email or SSO login) prior to the University-wide rollout, you will have received an email from the ChatGPT Support team with more information.

Major ChatGPT Edu features

Codex (University Staff only)

Codex is a coding agent built into ChatGPT itself as a special tool that lives outside normal chats.

Codex is designed to function as a collaborative coding partner with these key capabilities:

  • Works directly with your codebase by accessing GitHub repositories
  • Operates in its own virtual environment where it can analyze and run code
  • Submits changes through Pull Requests that humans can review before merging
  • Handles multiple tasks simultaneously, allowing developers to work on other things while Codex completes assignments

Codex covers several different capabilities and the ones currently enabled are as below:

  • Codex Cloud / Web
    This is accessible at https://chatgpt.com/codex or by clicking the Codex button in the left sidebar when on https://chatgpt.com. Using Codex Cloud, users can connect to a GitHub repository, and ask in natural language to make changes. The interface is an augmented chat interface. Codex Cloud will do this, and then can optionally create pull requests in the associated GitHub repository.
  • Codex CLI
    This is a coding agent that engineers can access through a CLI terminal. Users can download the tool from the link, and login using their ChatGPT Edu account. This still uses natural language interactions to allow users to make changes to code. Unlike the Codex Cloud, you do not have to explicitly connect to a GitHub repository. This tool has access to your local files, and can run commands directly on your computer.
  • Codex IDE
    This is similar to Codex CLI except that this is an extension directly for an IDE program. Currently OpenAI offer Codex IDE extensions for three popular IDEs, Visual Studio Code, Cursor, and Windsurf. 
Connectors (University Staff only)

Connectors let ChatGPT securely connect to third‑party applications so you can search files, pull live data, and reference content right in the chat.

Currently within the University's workspace you can use the following connectors:

  • Outlook calendar
  • Outlook email
  • SharePoint
  • GitHub
Custom GPTs

With a SSO-linked ChatGPT Edu account, you can:

  • Create and manage custom GPTs
  • Share custom GPTs to the University's workspace and externally (please refer to guidance on sharing custom GPTs)
  • Access custom GPTs shared in the University's workspace (this does not apply to third-party GPTs due to data concerns)

We have created an Oxford GPT Library to showcase some of the custom GPTs created and shared within the University's workspace.

Projects

Projects are smart workspaces that keep everything related to a long‑running effort in one place. You can group together chats, upload reference files, and add custom instructions so ChatGPT remembers what matters and stays on‑topic. With memory, context, and flexible tools, they’re ideal for repeated and evolving work such as writing, research, planning, and more.

Shared projects are not currently enabled in the University's workspace.