OpenAI's "GPT-6.2 Astra" and "GPT-6.2 Sol" may have appeared on Google Cloud; leakers post screenshots, neither company has announced them (follow-up)

Two leakers post "deployed on Google Cloud"

Two leakers on X posted one after the other on Nov. 4 (Nov. 5 Japan time) that OpenAI's unannounced models "GPT-6.2 Astra" and "GPT-6.2 Sol" had appeared on Google Cloud. @lyraxana, which posts leaked information, wrote at 8:28 a.m. Nov. 5 Japan time that they "have been deployed on Google Cloud," and 13 minutes later @LuminaBench, which tracks AI model developments, followed. Both attached images showing two lines, "base_model:gpt-6.2-astra" and "base_model:gpt-6.2-sol." Neither OpenAI nor Google has made an announcement, and the authenticity of the screenshots has not been confirmed.

Regarding 6.2, on Nov. 1, the label "gpt-6.2-astra" appeared in usage records of the coding tool "Codex," and on Nov. 4 The Information reported that a new Astra and Sol could be released as early as the 6th. Until now, "6.2" for Sol had been only what posters on X called it, with no supporting sightings found. If the leakers' images are genuine, this would be the first time the name "gpt-6.2-sol" has been shown on screen.

Google Cloud name not visible in the images

All that the images show is a "Values" heading and two lines of text. Neither image shows the Google Cloud name, the page's URL, a project name or a date and time. The claim that the location was Google Cloud rests solely on the text of the posts. @LuminaBench wrote in a reply that its tracking tool alerted it just as it was about to go to sleep, but neither poster explained where the images came from, and it is not known whether the two images were taken separately.

The term "base_model" itself has been used in Google Cloud's displays of usage quotas. A 2024 post on a developer forum includes the notation "base_model : anthropic-claude-3-haiku-20240307," and there is also a quota item named "online_prediction_requests_per_base_model." Some replies on X suggest it is a Google Cloud quota page, but that is no more than speculation. That the form of the term matches is not evidence that the screenshot is genuine.

As far as ORIENS checked on Nov. 5, neither OpenAI's official changelog nor Google Cloud's release notes mention 6.2. Replies to the posts questioned the absence of an official announcement, and no post presenting the results of verification could be found.

Google Cloud has offered OpenAI models on a trial basis since October

OpenAI and Google Cloud announced a partnership on Oct. 21 (Oct. 22 Japan time). They said "GPT-6 Astra," "GPT-6.1 Sol" and "GPT-6 Luna" would be offered on a trial basis to some companies through "Model Garden," the enterprise model service, and expanded to general availability within the next few weeks. They did not give pricing, regions or a date for general availability. Companies can buy OpenAI models within the spending commitments they have made with Google Cloud.

Support is also advancing on the Codex side. According to OpenAI's changelog, the command-line version released on Oct. 27 added the ability to connect to Google Cloud's "Vertex AI," and the Oct. 29 version added "GPT-6.1 Terra" to the model list for Vertex AI.

If the posts are accurate, preparations for OpenAI's next models extend to the Google Cloud side as well. However, there has been no indication of whether 6.2 will be offered on Model Garden, or when and to which companies. Current API pricing per 1 million tokens is $10 for input and $50 for output for GPT-6 Astra and $2 for input and $10 for output for GPT-6.1 Sol, and pricing for 6.2 is not known.

"Tomorrow" release is the leaker's prediction

@LuminaBench's "tomorrow" is the poster's prediction, and no basis was given. The post was made on the 4th U.S. time, so read by U.S. dates "tomorrow" would be the 5th, a day earlier than the timing of as early as Friday, the 6th, that The Information reported citing people familiar with the matter. It is not known which time zone the poster was writing in. OpenAI has not indicated a release date.

Predictions about the new Astra have repeatedly missed. There was speculation that a new model would come out on Nov. 1 as well, but no model was released. In October, a rumor spread that "GPT-6.5" would be released on Nov. 1, and the screenshot behind it was pointed out to be from a fake site. A rumor @lyraxana relayed on Oct. 18 about the release timing of Anthropic's "Claude Fable 5.5" also proved wrong. OpenAI was reported in September to have called off the release of GPT-6.1 Astra due to safety test results, and the schedule for 6.2 could also shift.

On the prediction market Polymarket, the probability that the next Astra would be released between Nov. 2 and 8 was 37.3% as of Nov. 1 according to a tally by CellCog, and about 69.2% as of Nov. 2 according to CometAPI. The probability after these posts has not been confirmed. If the reported schedule holds, it would come just before rival Anthropic's investor roadshow for its IPO, which can begin as early as Nov. 10.