OpenAI and Anthropic have released new, more affordable AI models within hours of each other, even as both companies have recently supported calls for a more measured pace of frontier AI development. The releases point to a growing focus on making AI cheaper and more efficient for businesses, rather than only building increasingly powerful models.
OpenAI launched GPT-6 Sol and GPT-6 Luna, positioned below its flagship GPT-6 Astra. Sol is aimed at more demanding workloads such as coding and AI-agent tasks, while Luna targets high-volume, routine work such as document summarisation and information extraction. OpenAI said improvements in caching and inference allowed it to reduce API prices by 50% compared with GPT-5.6 promotional pricing.
Anthropic, meanwhile, introduced Claude Opus 5.5, saying it offers performance comparable to its higher-end model on most work while costing about 40% less to run than Opus 5. The company also said the new model is more than 30% faster.
The timing is significant. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei recently called for the industry to “pace the frontier,” while OpenAI CEO Sam Altman supported the idea of slowing the development of the most advanced AI systems so safety measures can keep pace. The latest launches, however, are focused primarily on cost efficiency and wider business adoption, rather than representing a major new frontier capability.
