OpenAI to limit access to Astra model’s advanced cyber features due to hacking concerns

OpenAI is changing its model launch strategy as its technology becomes more powerful and the potential for its misuse grows—especially following the July incident in which the AI models it was testing autonomously planned and executed a cyberattack against AI company Hugging Face.

The company’s next model, Astra, comes out “soon,” OpenAI said. It said Astra is substantially more capable than the company’s current frontier AI model, GPT-5.6 Sol, which itself is highly capable at cyber tasks. But only a handful of partners will get access to its most advanced cybersecurity capabilities as OpenAI works to balance helping companies prevent cyberattacks while not empowering attackers at the same time, a company spokesperson told reporters on a briefing today.

OpenAI is courting customers to use its models to prevent cyberattacks, or for “defensive cybersecurity.” It sees these sales as a critical revenue stream and a main priority for its new chief revenue officer Dali Rajic.

The small group of “alpha testers” with full access to Astra’s cybersecurity capabilities includes “individuals and organizations that are responsible for protecting criti...