Path to Astra: Critical Capabilities and Frontier Safeguards
OpenAI, Tuesday, September 1st, 2026
Astra is OpenAI's first model to meet the Critical cybersecurity threshold under its Preparedness Framework.
OpenAI published an account of how it prepared for the release of Astra, the first of its models to meet the Critical cybersecurity capability threshold under the Preparedness Framework.
Reaching that threshold triggers a stronger set of safeguards before and during deployment. The post describes the capability evaluations that led to the classification and the mitigations attached to release. It serves as the technical companion to the model's launch materials.