In August, Elon Musk’s xAI promised to make Grok, the corporate’s flagship generative AI mannequin powering plenty of options on X, accessible by way of an API. Now, that API has arrived — albeit a bit bare-bones in the mean time.
The xAI API solely has a single mannequin, “grok-beta,” priced at $5 per million enter tokens (~750,000 phrases) or $15 per million output tokens. Tokens are subdivided bits of uncooked knowledge, just like the syllables “fan,” “tas,” and “tic” within the phrase “unbelievable.”
It’s unclear which Grok mannequin “grok-beta” is perhaps; Grok 2 is the very newest on X. The documentation for the API refers to Grok 2 and Grok mini, a light-weight and extra reasonably priced model of Grok — so it might nicely be a technical subject.
Some customers on X additionally reported encountering issues paying for utilization credit.
The xAI API helps perform calling, which connects Grok fashions to exterior instruments reminiscent of databases and serps. And, though they don’t seem like stay but, the documentation hints at imaginative and prescient fashions able to analyzing each textual content and pictures.
Musk shaped xAI final yr. Quickly after, the corporate — which just lately moved into OpenAI’s outdated places of work — launched its first Grok mannequin on X to X Premium+ customers, who pay $16 a month.
Grok has what Musk has described as “a rebellious streak” — a willingness to reply “spicy questions which can be rejected by most different AI programs.” Advised to be vulgar, for instance, Grok will fortunately oblige, spewing profanities and colourful language you received’t hear from ChatGPT.
Grok has turn into more and more ingrained within the X expertise. Because of an integration with the open picture generator Flux, Grok can generate pictures on X (with out guardrails, controversially). It summarizes information and trending occasions (typically with errors, thoughts you), and it might improve X’s search capabilities, account bios, submit analytics, and reply capabilities sooner or later.
xAI is sprinting to catch as much as formidable rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic within the generative AI race. In Might, xAI raised $6 billion in a funding spherical led by buyers together with Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and Constancy.
Musk typically asserts that X’s knowledge provides xAI a leg up in comparison with rivals. This month, X modified its privateness coverage to permit third events, together with xAI, to coach fashions on X posts.
As a part of the pitch for xAI’s $6 billion funding spherical, the startup additionally outlined a imaginative and prescient the place its fashions can be educated on knowledge from Musk’s varied corporations, together with Tesla, SpaceX, and The Boring Firm, and its fashions might then enhance expertise throughout these corporations.
Tesla shareholders, for one, weren’t on board with that plan. A number of sued Musk over the choice to start out xAI, arguing that Musk has diverted each expertise and sources from Tesla to what’s primarily a competing enterprise.
Musk stated this summer season that xAI is coaching the following technology of Grok fashions at its Memphis datacenter, which has been accused of worsening smog with unauthorized generators. The corporate hopes to improve the datacenter subsequent yr, however will want approval from the Tennessee Valley Authority so as to take action.
