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OpenAI's most powerful AI yet launches Thursday after government delay

There will be three versions – Sol, Terra, and Luna – ranging from most advanced to most cost-efficient.

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The OpenAI logo on a smartphone screen. Samuel Boivin/NurPhoto/Getty.

Reuters
Jul 8, 2026 1 min read
Key takeaways:
  • OpenAI will launch GPT-5.6 on Thursday after US government security review delayed the release over fears of misuse by foreign adversaries.
  • The Commerce Department approved the launch following additional testing under a new framework requiring AI companies to submit advanced models for review.
  • OpenAI will release three versions: Sol (most advanced), Terra (mid-tier), and Luna (cost-efficient), expanding access beyond vetted partners.
  • The approval follows similar clearance for Anthropic's models, signaling Washington's growing role in controlling powerful AI releases amid national security concerns.

OpenAI will publicly launch its most capable model, GPT‑5.6, on Thursday, after delaying the launch last month on the US government's request amid national security concerns that powerful AI systems could be misused.

This comes on the heels of the US government lifting curbs on Anthropic's latest Fable and Mythos AI models last week, less than three weeks after the company was ordered to suspend their access over national security risks.

Washington has increased scrutiny of advanced AI model releases to identify potential threats on concerns that the technology could be misused by military or intelligence in China, Russia or other countries of concern.

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Axios, which broke the news on the OpenAI launch, reported citing a source familiar with the matter, that the US Department of Commerce had approved a broad launch of GPT-5.6, following additional government testing under Washington's new oversight framework for frontier AI.

OpenAI had limited the model's access to a small group of vetted partners whose details were shared with the authorities.

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The tech firm now plans to launch GPT-5.6 Sol, along with Terra and Luna models, OpenAI said in a post on X late on Tuesday.

Sol is OpenAI's most advanced model yet, while Terra is the mid-tier lower-cost model and Luna is the most cost-efficient option.

The White House and the US Department of Commerce did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment outside regular business hours.

Increased scrutiny of AI models began with US President Donald Trump signing an executive order establishing a voluntary framework for AI developers to offer "covered frontier models" to ​the U government for up to 30 days before releasing them to trusted partners.

Anthropic has warned that it was "probably impossible" to make any AI model fully robust to jailbreaks and noted the potential for the development of a universal jailbreak that would be able to unblock "an entire class of harmful behaviors."


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