OpenAI abandons plan to release upcoming model as safety concerns escalate

OpenAI decided not to release an upcoming artificial intelligence model, GPT-6.1 Astra, after the company determined that it did not adequately meet its safety standards, CNBC confirmed on Monday.

OpenAI's decision to abandon the release comes as the AI industry faces intensifying concerns surrounding the safety of advanced models. In an essay earlier this month, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei urged foundation labs to slow the pace of model development as fears emerge that they're spinning out of human control.

"Of course we want to make sure our model development is safe no matter whether that's in the company, or when we ship it to users," Saachi Jain, head of safety systems at OpenAI, said in a statement. "But when we ship it to users, we have an extremely high bar in terms of safety and alignment."

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