×

OpenAI says upcoming model is so capable it requires stronger guardrails

By Thomson Reuters Sep 1, 2026 | 3:06 PM

By Deepa Seetharaman

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept 1 – OpenAI has determined that one of ​its upcoming models ‌is so capable that it requires extra safety layers during its development and eventual release.

The ‌company’s ​internal testing ⁠showed that the ⁠model, called Astra, is significantly more capable than the most advanced OpenAI model ​available to the public today, GPT-5.6 Sol, OpenAI ⁠officials said on ⁠Tuesday.

The ChatGPT maker ​is continuing to navigate intense ​safety concerns after OpenAI-created agents ‌broke out of their testing arena and hacked open-source platform Hugging Face. The ⁠incident prompted OpenAI to pause much of its model development for two ⁠weeks ‌to bolster its ⁠defenses.

Astra wasn’t involved ​in ‌the Hugging Face incident, ​but its ⁠capabilities still require more careful measures, OpenAI officials said.

(Reporting by Deepa Seetharaman in San Francisco; editing by ​David Gaffen)