[FEATURE] Persist last-used mode or add a default-mode setting (Chat vs Cowork) for new conversations

Preflight Checklist

• [x] I have searched existing requests and this feature hasn't been requested yet
• [x] This is a single feature request (not multiple features)

Problem Statement

In the merged Chat/Cowork home, every new conversation opens with Cowork preselected in the composer, both from the home screen and inside Projects. Selecting Chat does not persist: the next new conversation reverts to Cowork. There is no user-facing setting to choose a default mode.

On my install this began August 14 after an auto-update to 1.30096.1 (194d93); before that, new conversations opened on Chat. Anthropic support (Fin) confirmed the mode choice is not remembered by design, that no default-mode setting exists, and that the Organization settings Cowork toggle is Team/Enterprise only, so individual plans have no way to disable Cowork.

For users who work almost entirely in Chat, this adds a required click on every new thread. A missed click sends the message as a Cowork task, which consumes usage faster than Chat and creates a session type the user never wanted.

Environment: Claude Desktop 1.30096.1 (194d93), macOS Tahoe, MacBook Air M4, Max plan.

Proposed Solution

Either of these would resolve it:

1. Persist the last-used mode per user for new conversations, the way the app already remembers the last-selected model.
2. Add a setting to choose the default mode for new conversations (Chat or Cowork).

Alternative Solutions

• Clear Cache and Restart: no effect; the default is not client-side state.
• Disabling Cowork via Organization settings: not available on individual Free/Pro/Max plans, per Anthropic support.

Priority

Medium - Would be very helpful

Feature Category

Configuration and settings

Use Case Example

1. I work in Chat almost exclusively and rarely use Cowork.
2. I start several new conversations a day, many of them inside Projects.
3. Every new conversation opens with Cowork preselected, so I have to click Chat before typing.
4. If I forget, my message sends as a Cowork task: heavier usage consumption and a session type I didn't want.
5. With this feature, the composer would open on Chat (my last-used mode or a default I set) and I'd send with no extra clicks.

Additional Context

_No response_