AI news, research and industry updates — with our take on what matters.
Six months after the first US test, OpenAI expanded ChatGPT ads to five new markets on August 11, with users in Europe told ads would follow later that month. Ads appear as labeled cards below answers, only on the Free and $8 Go tiers. Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu stay ad-free, which turns ad-free use into one more reason to pay.
The Digital Omnibus on AI (Regulation (EU) 2026/1744) entered into force on July 27, pushing obligations for most high-risk AI systems back to December 2027. It did not move everything: the Article 50 transparency duties, covering disclosure when people talk to an AI and labeling of AI-generated content, applied on August 2 as originally planned, along with the AI Office's enforcement powers over general-purpose models.
The $20 plan is no longer where the competition happens. ChatGPT Pro, Claude Max 5x and Google AI Ultra now cluster around $100 a month, while a new budget tier has appeared below $10 with ChatGPT Go at $8 and Google AI Plus at $4.99. Google also moved Gemini from fixed daily prompt caps to compute-based allowances.
From July 20, Anthropic's top model Claude Fable 5 is included only in the Max and Team Premium plans, for up to 50% of their usage limits. Pro and Team Standard subscribers now reach it through metered usage credits at $10 per million input tokens and $50 per million output tokens, with a one-time $100 credit to ease the switch. Anthropic said demand for the model had been hard to predict.
OpenAI released GPT-5.6 as three models: Sol (flagship), Terra (everyday) and Luna (fastest and cheapest). Sol launched at the same $5/$30 per million tokens as GPT-5.5. On July 30, OpenAI cut Terra's price by 20% and Luna's by 80%. A plain GPT-5.6 API call routes to Sol, the most expensive tier, unless you choose another one.
Anthropic released Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5 on June 9, then suspended access on June 12 to comply with US Department of Commerce export controls. The Department lifted the controls on June 30, and Anthropic restored access on July 1.
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