In August, Elon Musk’s xAI teased the release of Grok, its flagship generative AI model, through an API. That API is now live, though currently in a minimalist form.
The xAI API offers one model, dubbed “grok-beta,” priced at $5 per million input tokens (approximately 750,000 words) and $15 per million output tokens. For context, tokens represent data fragments, similar to syllables in words. It’s not clear which version of Grok this model is based on, but documentation references both Grok 2 and Grok mini, suggesting the current offering might be a technical interim version.
Some early adopters on X (formerly Twitter) have reported issues with purchasing API usage credits. Despite these early hiccups, the xAI API supports function calling, enabling Grok to interact with external systems like databases and search engines. The API documentation also hints at upcoming vision models capable of analyzing text and images, though these features are not yet active.
Musk founded xAI last year, and the company quickly moved into OpenAI’s old offices. Its first Grok model launched on X for Premium+ users, who pay $16 per month. Musk has characterized Grok as having a “rebellious streak,” offering unfiltered responses to controversial questions—something that sets it apart from more restrained models like ChatGPT.
Grok’s role on X is steadily expanding. Through integration with the image generator Flux, Grok can now generate images directly on X, though the absence of content moderation has raised concerns. The model is also being used to summarize news and trends (with occasional errors), and it may eventually improve search capabilities, account bios, and analytics on X.
xAI is positioning itself as a competitor to industry heavyweights like OpenAI and Anthropic in the generative AI space. The company raised $6 billion in a funding round earlier this year, backed by major investors like Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and Fidelity.
Musk has repeatedly emphasized that X’s data provides xAI with a significant edge over competitors. Recently, X updated its privacy policy to allow third parties, including xAI, to train their models using data from user posts.
As part of xAI’s $6 billion funding pitch, the company outlined plans to leverage data from Musk’s other ventures, including Tesla, SpaceX, and The Boring Company, to enhance AI model development. However, Tesla shareholders have raised objections, with some filing lawsuits accusing Musk of diverting resources and talent from Tesla to xAI.
This summer, Musk revealed that xAI is training its next generation of Grok models at a Memphis data center, which has come under fire for worsening air quality due to unapproved turbines. The company plans to upgrade the data center next year but will need approval from the Tennessee Valley Authority to proceed.
