# OpenAI Astra's Improvements, and Why You Probably Won't Notice > Source: > Published: 2026-09-04 20:47:21+00:00 ## What Happened OpenAI released its **GPT-6 Astra** model this week, calling it its most capable model yet. On benchmarks, it has new highs across computer use, coding, science, cybersecurity, and complex professional work. Epoch’s Capabilities Index [gives](https://epoch.ai/eci?view=graph&tab=release-date&subset-view=graph&subset-tab=Software+engineering&showFrontierTrend=true) Astra a score of **169**, up from **163 for Claude Fable 5.1** and roughly **137 for o1-mini two years ago**. The frontier is plainly still moving. The frontier has been advancing at roughly **14 ECI points per year**. But in 2024 14 points represented about a **10.4% improvement**. At Astra’s level, the same 14 points decline to about **8.4%**. In other words, **absolute progress continues, while relative progress declines**. ## What It Means - **People experience relative improvement, not benchmarks.** Going from 50 to 70 can transform what a model can do. Going from 150 to 170 is much less likely to transform ordinary usage.