OpenAI Launches GPT-6 Astra, Offers Credits for Delayed Access

OpenAI has unveiled GPT-6 Astra, a new flagship model designed to operate computers across multiple software applications and carry out complex workflows. The release pushes the company’s technology beyond conversational assistance toward more autonomous AI agents that can interpret instructions, retain extensive task context and take actions. Its computer-use capabilities could have broad implications for knowledge work and software automation, while also raising concerns about cybersecurity and the safeguards needed for increasingly capable systems.

GPT-6 Astra supports a 1.05-million-token context window, with improved retrieval of notes embedded in long contexts and the ability for users to submit asynchronous questions while tasks are running. Reports said the model scored 99.9% on ARC-AGI-3, though independent validation and detailed testing conditions were not provided in the event summary. OpenAI is initially limiting access to selected programs after the model reached what the company describes as a “Critical” cyber-capability threshold, rather than making it broadly available.

OpenAI’s next artificial intelligence model is reportedly being developed under the internal codename Astra and is widely rumored to become GPT-6. The model’s anticipated advances in autonomous cybersecurity and coding could intensify competition among frontier AI developers, while raising the stakes for OpenAI’s safety testing and its management of systems capable of performing complex tasks with less human oversight.

Prediction-market traders are betting that OpenAI will release Astra by the end of September 2026, signaling confidence that the model could arrive within weeks. The company has reportedly slowed the rollout after Astra demonstrated powerful autonomous cyber and programming capabilities. OpenAI has not publicly confirmed the model’s final name, an exact launch date, or whether it will be marketed as GPT-6.

OpenAI is reportedly testing a new pretrained foundation model code-named Astra, fueling expectations of a major upgrade to the technology underpinning future ChatGPT products. Pretraining helps determine a model’s capacity to reason, generalize and support downstream applications. Astra’s reported strength in scientific reasoning and mathematics could intensify competition among OpenAI and rival artificial-intelligence developers if its performance is confirmed.

The model could be released as early as August, with one overseas report suggesting OpenAI may unveil it next week. Trading data from U.S. prediction market Kalshi indicates that market participants are concentrating their bets on a launch in mid-to-late August. OpenAI has not formally announced Astra, provided a specific release date or confirmed speculation that the model will be marketed as ChatGPT 6.