Key Takeaway: ChatGPT in the UK unlocks collaborative AI workflows that shrink review cycles and centralise knowledge.
Why it matters: Firms that adopt shared AI projects can reduce repetitive work, tighten handoffs and improve speed to decision.
OpenAI’s ChatGPT rewires team workflows
The ZDNet report on ChatGPT shared projects and app integrations describes a major update enabling teams to collaborate inside the chatbot across apps like Gmail and Dropbox. ZDNet report on ChatGPT shared projects and app integrations lays out who gets early access and how data flows between apps and the model.
Source: ZDNet, 2025
Organisations can create shared projects, invite teammates and let the model reference shared documents for drafting, summarising and decision support. This shifts ChatGPT from a solo assistant into a team workspace that remembers shared context and files.
"Shared projects change the dynamic: the AI becomes a team member that holds context, not a single person's scratchpad,"
— Angus Gow, Co-founder, Anjin.
Source: Angus Gow, Anjin
The £ opportunity most teams still miss
Many businesses think about ChatGPT as a drafting tool, not a collaborative platform that can shorten project cycles and reduce churn. In the UK, ChatGPT can turn scattered inboxes and siloed drives into a searchable collective memory, saving billable hours and reducing rework.
Official data shows UK productivity struggles and room for digital uplift, so incremental gains from collaboration tools compound quickly when scaled across teams. For example, national analyses consistently show productivity drag costs UK business billions annually, creating urgency to adopt efficiency tools. Office for National Statistics provides the broader productivity context that makes operational gains commercially meaningful.
Source: Office for National Statistics, 2024
Regulation is central. The ICO has warned organisations to map data flows before feeding personal data into AI. Firms that skip governance risk fines and reputational damage. ICO guidance on AI and data protection outlines obligations for UK organisations integrating third-party models.
Source: ICO, 2024
Your 5-step rollout that actually lands projects
- Map data flows, 2 weeks: identify Gmail and Dropbox sources before connecting ChatGPT shared projects (compliance checkpoint).
- Run a 30-day pilot: track task cycle time and shared project adoption with ChatGPT collaboration prompts.
- Train users weekly: reduce handover errors by 30% using collaboration playbooks and productivity coaching.
- Measure ROI monthly: report time saved and rework reduction in hours using collaboration and productivity metrics.
- Scale and audit quarterly: enforce ICO-aligned controls and refresh shared project permissions.
How Anjin’s AI Agents for Productivity delivers results
First, explore Anjin’s AI Agents for Productivity to model shared workflows and measure gains. Anjin’s AI Agents for Productivity maps task-level handoffs, automates status updates and surfaces the right documents to the team AI.
In a pilot scenario for a UK professional services team, the agent ingested shared drives and email threads, auto-generated weekly progress notes and reduced meeting time by projected uplift of 25–40%. The projection assumed standard UK bill rates and typical project cadence.
Expert Insight: "Teams unlock the real value once AI holds shared context across people and files; that’s where productivity compounds," says Angus Gow, Co-founder, Anjin.
Source: Angus Gow, Anjin
We linked the same solution later in the workflow to automate reporting and handovers. Use the tailored workspace in Anjin productivity agent to run templates and the Anjin insights page to measure uplift versus costs.
Quantified outcomes in our scenario included a projected 30% reduction in review cycles, a 20% cut in internal email volume and a 15% faster client response time when scaled across 50 users in the UK market.
Act now to capture the competitive edge
Start by treating ChatGPT as a shared platform, not an individual tool; in the UK, ChatGPT must be governed and measured to be useful.
Quick Answers
- Question: How do UK retailers use ChatGPT for collaboration? Answer: UK retailers use ChatGPT shared projects to centralise product info, speed copy cycles and coordinate promotions across teams.
- Question: Can ChatGPT improve team productivity? Answer: Yes; ChatGPT shared projects cut handover time and reduce duplicate work, improving productivity when paired with governance.
- Question: Is data safe in ChatGPT shared projects? Answer: Data can be safe if organisations map flows, apply ICO controls and restrict project access in the UK.
Prompt to test: "Using ChatGPT, in the UK, create a 30-day pilot plan with Anjin’s AI Agents for Productivity that measures time saved, sets ICO-aligned data checkpoints, and targets a 25% reduction in review cycles."
Take the practical step: start a pilot that connects a single team to a shared project, measure cycle time and cut onboarding time by 40% in three months using Anjin’s tools and governance templates on the pricing and contact pages.
