Is GPT-6 Astra AGI? It can certainly use a computer almost like we do: Excel, Power BI, KiCad and browser testing

Is GPT-6 Astra AGI? The question has been everywhere since OpenAI announced it on September 3, 2026, but the definition of AGI keeps shifting. The concrete fact is a different one: GPT-6 Astra uses a computer far better than previous models. It opens applications, uses the browser, clicks, types and works autonomously for hours, even days, until it reaches a goal.

I’ve been building software for 10 years, 5 of them in cybersecurity applied to software development. For anyone building software and automations, this capability has huge consequences.

What can GPT-6 Astra do with a computer?

GPT-6 Astra works inside programs, the way a person would. These are the examples OpenAI showed:

• Excel: you give it data, ask for a financial model, and Astra opens Excel and works in it directly.
• Power BI: you give it data and it builds a dashboard inside Power BI.
• KiCad: OpenAI gave it the schematic of an electrical circuit. Astra opened KiCad, placed the components and created the printed circuit board layout.

The difference from before is the method. For a spreadsheet, GPT-6 Astra opens Excel on the computer and uses it through the interface, like a human, instead of writing itself a Python script that processes a CSV.

Now picture the same capability applied to the tools you use every day: your CRM, your company’s management software, Excel, the browser, your internal tools.

Is GPT-6 Astra the first model that can use a computer?

No. Computer use already existed: with tools like Claude Cowork you could already have AI use applications and the browser.

With GPT-6 Astra, three things change:

1. the number of tasks the model can complete goes up;
2. the accuracy with which it completes them goes up;
3. the supervision it needs goes down.

Less supervision is the part that matters. An agent that asks for confirmation every two clicks stays an assistant. An agent that finishes the job on its own becomes an operational tool.

Why does GPT-6 Astra matter for people building software with AI?

For anyone building with AI, GPT-6 Astra brings two changes.

The first is about the interface. OpenAI says Astra has better visual judgment on the user interfaces it builds. Websites and apps come out with a better front end and less AI slop, that generic look that makes an AI-generated UI instantly recognizable.

The second is about testing. GPT-6 Astra can build a feature, open it in the browser and try it the way a developer would. Lovable, which tested the model, reports that raising the reasoning effort makes Astra run more autonomous iterations on a new app and verify more of what it built directly in the browser.

For anyone who codes, this is huge. One of the hardest steps today is going from "build me this app" to a product with a good interface that has actually been tested. It’s the same step non-developers hit when they try to build software with AI without knowing how to code.

An agent that builds, opens the browser, checks and fixes shortens exactly that stretch. It’s also how I already use AI agents in custom software development for companies: the agent builds and verifies, I decide what to build.

How do you use GPT-6 Astra in Codex?

To use GPT-6 Astra you need at least the ChatGPT Plus plan, the entry plan at €20 a month. The most direct way is Codex:

1. download the Codex desktop app;
2. in the settings, under computer use, enable browser use by turning on Google Chrome;
3. in the same section, enable computer use by turning on the option that lets it control any app;
4. give it a prompt and watch how it works.

Start with a task you know well, in a program you use every day. You’ll quickly see where Astra saves you time and where it still needs you.