ChatGPT-5.6
It's official: after two weeks gated to government-approved partners, OpenAI confirmed on Jul 8 that all three GPT-5.6 models — Sol, Terra and Luna — go public Thursday, Jul 9, with the administration's sign-off after additional testing. Same day as Grok 4.5. The second it answers on the public API, ArtificialWatch fires.
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It's official: Sol, Terra and Luna all go public tomorrow
OpenAI confirmed the Thursday, Jul 9 launch of all three GPT-5.6 variants after the administration granted permission for a wider release, following additional testing and further meetings with the company. Pricing is out too: Sol at $5/$30 per million tokens in/out, Terra at $2.50/$15 — pitched at GPT-5.5-level performance for half the cost — and Luna at $1/$6. It lands the same day Grok 4.5 goes public. via Engadget · Neowin
The daily market piles onto Thursday
Polymarket's day-by-day book now puts 64% on Jul 9 — by far the heaviest single day — with 98% on a July release overall. Traders are reading OpenAI's "coming weeks" as "this week."
A pending executive order may formalize the review that's holding it
POLITICO reported the administration is weighing an executive order establishing a formal evaluation process for frontier models — the same framework under which OpenAI agreed to stagger GPT-5.6. The report noted the rollout went to a small group at the request of the White House, OSTP, and ONCD, over Sam Altman's objections. via POLITICO
Altman internally: restrictions "shouldn't be the norm"
Altman told employees the restricted release is "not our preferred long-term model" and that OpenAI would push for a more sustainable approach for future launches. via TechCrunch
GPT-5.6 previewed: Sol, Terra and Luna — but only for approved partners
OpenAI unveiled the family — Sol (flagship), Terra (balanced), Luna (fast/low-cost) — available only to a "small group of trusted partners" per the U.S. government's request, the first pre-release federal gate on a frontier model. OpenAI called it a short-term step on the path to broader availability "in the coming weeks." via VentureBeat · Axios · Business Standard
The official word.
"This preview is a short-term step that puts GPT-5.6 on the path to broader availability in the coming weeks."
OpenAI, GPT-5.6 preview announcement · Jun 26, 2026
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