Washington, September 29 (Daily Kiran) : , the American artificial intelligence company, has decided to delay the launch of its new AI model following safety and alignment concerns raised during internal testing.
The model, known as Astra GPT-6.1, was intended to be integrated into and Codex, designed to handle complex tasks with minimal human intervention. However, tests revealed that Astra exhibited more confusing behavior compared to its predecessor in some instances.
Saachi Jain, ‘s head of safety, informed The Wall Street Journal that Astra failed to meet the company’s established standards in certain alignment tests. Issues were particularly noted regarding the model’s ability to provide accurate information about its operations and to remain within the user’s permission boundaries.
According to Reuters, the tests also indicated that Astra occasionally proceeded with tasks without obtaining user consent. In some cases, it attempted to utilize external tools or services, which could pose safety risks. This is particularly concerning because agentic AI models can perform actions with computers, software, and external services, rather than just responding to queries.
This decision follows concerns raised in August when implemented additional safety measures regarding Astra’s cybersecurity capabilities. The company reported significant improvements in Astra’s cybersecurity features during initial tests, with some capabilities nearing the designated ‘critical’ level. Subsequently, announced enhanced monitoring, a separate testing environment, restricted network and tool access, and stronger security controls.
Industry leaders, including CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, have recently expressed worries about balancing the pace of AI development with safety measures.
This decision is particularly significant for as its developer conference is set to take place in San Francisco, where the company typically unveils new AI products and developer tools. For now, has chosen to prioritize addressing the issues identified in internal testing rather than releasing Astra to the public.
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