Codex Desktop: add ChatGPT-style Read Aloud for responses
Feature request
Please add a first-class Read Aloud feature to Codex Desktop for assistant responses.
Why this is high priority
This is a high-preference accessibility and usability request. ChatGPT already has read-aloud behavior across phone, desktop, and browser experiences, but Codex Desktop does not appear to have the same basic affordance.
Codex produces long explanations, plans, reviews, logs, and implementation summaries. Reading all of that visually is often tiring, especially in long sessions. A read-aloud control would make Codex much easier to use while reviewing code, multitasking, resting eyes, or working in lower-capacity moments.
Requested UX
- Add a “Read aloud” action on assistant messages.
- Support play, pause, resume, and stop.
- Allow reading the latest assistant response without selecting text.
- Ideally support a keyboard shortcut.
- Keep it consistent with the existing ChatGPT read-aloud interaction where possible.
Why this matters
Codex Desktop is not only a coding executor; it is also a reading and review surface. Response audio would make the product more accessible, more ergonomic, and more aligned with the ChatGPT experience users already know.
This feels like a parity gap: if ChatGPT can read responses aloud on mobile, desktop, and web, Codex Desktop should be able to as well.
4 Comments
there is more and more marketing towards "codex for general work", and that means interaction with codex is not code - which would be indeed unfit for read aloud. But taking eyes off the screen and listen is already a major benefit for many.
voice is highly pushed, why not here? minimal risk and effort!
I agree here, this is load bearing.
As @rhimmon1 stated this is already in your flagship product, and feature parity across platforms is probably one of the biggest annoyances in major provider products right now (that, and the insatiable greed of owning every single feature and surface.)
TL;DR: Why am I having to keep an excel spreadsheet in my head to know which device, app, platform, etc is going to have STT/TTS/X or Y inference feature when you guys literally supply them all? The app should have shipped with this feature.
I’d also like this feature to extend to the Codex CLI/TUI after the desktop implementation.
A natural CLI UX would be a
/readcommand alongside/copy:/readwould read the latest assistant response aloud without requiring text selection. Ideally it would also support stopping or pausing playback, skip hidden metadata and tool output, and handle code blocks in a sensible way—for example, skip them by default or summarize them.That would bring the same accessibility, eye-rest, and multitasking benefits across both Codex interfaces.
Please add a Read Aloud button to Codex. I often use Codex while I’m doing other things, so being able to listen to the responses would be really helpful.
It would also be nice if Codex could work similarly to Gemini by automatically reading the response when I dictate a message, but staying silent when I type. If that’s difficult to add, I’d still be happy with a simple Read Aloud button.