News · 2026-09-29
OpenAI pivots to GPT-6.1 Sol at a fifth of Astra's price and launches Dots, its always-on agent
At DevDay on 29 September 2026 OpenAI launched GPT-6.1 Sol, priced at $2 per million input and $10 per million output tokens, which it positions near Astra-level performance for coding and computer use at a fifth of the standard token price, with 95 percent cached-input discounting and a 1.05 million token context window. It also unveiled Dots, always-on agents running on GPT-6 Astra with their own cloud computer, access to more than 4,000 applications, and reach from ChatGPT, Slack, and Teams. The launch followed a one-day delay: OpenAI shelved the GPT-6.1 Astra update on 28 September after safety review found it frequently ignored instructions.
What it means for buyers
Two moves land on buyers we compare. Coding teams get a credible cheap workhorse model, which strengthens the routing story platforms already tell and pressures per-seat pricing in our coding-assistant comparison. Personal-agent watchers get the third big entrant beside Meta's free Muse and invite-only Instinct, with Dots gated to paid tiers and withheld from EEA and UK Pro users at launch, so availability and containment terms now differ more between these agents than their headline capability does.
Where to check it
Sources
- The Hindu: OpenAI unveils GPT-6.1 Sol and 'Dots' AI agents at DevDay — Sol pricing, context window, Dots capabilities, checked 2026-09-30
- CNBC Daily Open: From need for speed to seatbelts — GPT-6.1 Astra shelving over safety standards, checked 2026-09-30