OpenAI Declares It Has "Opened the AGI Era" with GPT-6 Astra, Fighting Back Against Anthropic

【Financial News New York = Reporter Lee Byung-chul】  OpenAI has declared the beginning of the artificial general intelligence (AGI) era. The announcement came as it unveiled a new artificial intelligence (AI) model, GPT-6 Astra. OpenAI, which has been viewed as losing its technological lead to its biggest rival, Anthropic, this year, has launched a counteroffensive with its next-generation model.
OpenAI unveiled GPT-6 Astra on the 3rd (local time), introducing it as "the most intelligent model in the world." OpenAI, valued at $852 billion, said Astra delivers market-leading performance in software engineering, science, cybersecurity and other fields.
OpenAI placed particular emphasis on AGI. AGI refers to AI capable of demonstrating abilities comparable to or exceeding those of humans across various cognitive domains.
OpenAI President Greg Brockman described Astra as having "achieved a generational leap in performance." He said, "Everyone has a different definition of AGI, and it is an ambiguous concept," adding, "I think that when people look back in the future, they will think of this period and this model."
In effect, Brockman expressed confidence that Astra could be regarded as the model that opened the AGI era.
OpenAI's public reference to the arrival of AGI carries considerable significance. The company has long defined AGI as a specific milestone to be reached in the AI development process. It has also included so-called "AGI clauses" in major investment agreements. However, Brockman explained that AGI is now "closer to a mission or a spiritual concept" than a specific technical standard.
The launch of Astra also represents a counterattack against Anthropic.
OpenAI effectively pioneered the generative AI market by launching ChatGPT in late 2022. This year, however, it has been viewed as having lost its technological edge to Anthropic. Founded by former OpenAI employees, Anthropic has seen its valuation soar to as much as $965 billion, surpassing OpenAI's $852 billion.
As both companies pursue initial public offerings, the technology race is also expanding into a competition over corporate valuations. Anthropic is reportedly likely to receive a valuation of up to twice its current level in the IPO process later this year. OpenAI is also pursuing a listing, making Astra's performance and its ability to secure corporate customers key factors that will determine its future valuation.
Price competition is also intensifying. Astra is expected to be priced at a level similar to Anthropic's highest-performing model. OpenAI, however, emphasized that it is more efficient than previous models.
Brockman said, "What matters is the cost per task," adding, "The key is whether you can complete the task you want at the right price and speed."
OpenAI explained that Astra also demonstrated strong performance in corporate tasks such as financial modeling, tax-return preparation and data analysis. It outperformed human participants in a financial-modeling competition and can perform repetitive tasks such as preparing various documents, the company said. The center of gravity in the AI race is rapidly shifting from simple question-and-answer interactions to AI agents that independently perform real-world tasks.
However, as AI capabilities approach those of humans, concerns about safety are also growing.
OpenAI assessed Astra as the first model to reach the "Critical" level of cybersecurity capability under its safety standards. Given the appropriate tools and access permissions, the model could identify unknown security vulnerabilities and even develop ways to exploit them without step-by-step instructions from a person. Accordingly, OpenAI plans to initially provide Astra to a small number of companies, expand access over the coming days while monitoring cybersecurity issues.

[email protected] Reporter Lee Byung-chul Reporter