Add Temporary Chat mode for sensitive Codex desktop sessions
Codex desktop should support a Temporary Chat mode for sensitive one-off coding sessions.
Comparable products already expose this pattern:
- ChatGPT web calls it Temporary Chat.
- Claude Desktop exposes an Incognito chat ghost icon in its Chat surface.
Codex desktop is different from Claude Desktop: Claude has separate Chat, Cowork, and Code surfaces, while Codex desktop is primarily the coding/session interface. That means the equivalent feature should apply directly when starting a new Codex session, not only to a separate general-chat tab.
Expected behavior:
- A visible Temporary Chat or ghost/private-mode control when starting a new Codex desktop session.
- The session does not appear in normal sidebar/history after close.
- Resume is disabled.
- Local transcript/session/log persistence is disabled or clearly minimized.
- Connected apps/tools are disabled by default unless explicitly enabled for that temporary session.
- Workspace/file access starts from the narrowest possible scope.
- The UI includes a clear retention notice for any server-side safety/security retention.
- The mode is available for projectless/scratch sessions at minimum, even if full repo-attached sessions need extra constraints.
Why this matters:
Codex sessions often have access to local files, repos, tool output, and connected app context. Users need a lightweight way to ask sensitive one-off questions or do narrow coding work without creating a durable session artifact or pulling in broader workspace context.
Related prior issue: https://github.com/openai/codex/issues/6527 requested CLI incognito mode and was closed as not planned. This request is specifically for Codex desktop UX and Temporary Chat parity with ChatGPT and Claude Desktop.