OpenAI's GPT-5.6 faces U.S. government approval on per-customer basis

What happened

OpenAI must initially limit access to its new GPT-5.6 model to a small group of partners at the U.S. government's request, CEO Sam Altman announced during an internal Q&A. The government will approve access on a customer-by-customer basis during the preview phase, with a broader release expected a couple of weeks later if all goes smoothly. The push came from talks with the Office of the National Cyber Director and the Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Why it matters

This move reflects the Trump administration's executive order calling for voluntary review of new AI models around cybersecurity. Altman stated OpenAI does not prefer this long-term model and will work with the government toward a more sustainable approach—suggesting the company views the per-customer approval as a temporary constraint. The case may indicate that the government's framing of AI review as 'voluntary' is increasingly accompanied by direct intervention.

What to watch

The timeline hinges on government sign-off; Altman hopes for broader release in a couple of weeks. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called Altman to warn against moving forward without sign-off from more agencies, signaling government coordination at the Cabinet level. This follows a similar incident with Anthropic, whose Fable model was forced offline by the U.S. government after launch, despite prior collaboration on security testing.