OpenAI pushes AI into hardware engineering: GPT-6 Astra designs a prototype device in under a week, Mazda joins research
OpenAI shared progress on using its models for physical product engineering: two employees used GPT-6 Astra to design a prototype device, including the enclosure, circuit board and firmware, in under a week, and a contract manufacturer built a small batch in under a month. Model usage on its hardware teams has grown 23-fold since February, and it announced a research collaboration with Mazda on aerodynamics and crash safety. OpenAI itself admits the model still doesn't reliably account for factory limits and tolerances. My take: AI is moving from writing code to drawing parts and running simulations, which will speed up manufacturing design, but the last mile to mass production still needs human experience. Smaller manufacturers can start with repetitive drawing and checking work rather than handing over all of R&D.