xAI launches Grok 4 Fast, a faster and cheaper AI model
Key Points
- xAI releases Grok 4 Fast, a faster version of its Grok 4 chatbot
- Uses about 40% fewer thinking tokens while matching performance
- Price to achieve benchmark results drops by roughly 98%
- Unified architecture switches between reasoning and non‑reasoning modes
- Leads search‑related tasks and ranks eighth in text tasks on LMArena
- Available to all users on web, iOS and Android
- Launch occurs amid a competitive LLM landscape
Elon Musk's xAI has introduced Grok 4 Fast, a new version of its Grok 4 chatbot that promises quicker responses and lower costs. The company says the model uses about 40 percent fewer thinking tokens while delivering comparable performance, and it cuts the price of achieving the same benchmark results by roughly 98 percent. Grok 4 Fast can switch between a reasoning mode for complex tasks and a non‑reasoning mode for quick answers. The model is now available to all users on web, iOS and Android, and early tests show it leading in search‑related tasks.
Introduction of Grok 4 Fast
Following the release of Grok 4 and a notable incident involving its chatbot, xAI announced a new iteration called Grok 4 Fast. The company describes the model as a faster, more efficient reasoning system that retains the performance level of its predecessor while reducing resource usage.
Efficiency and Cost Reductions
xAI reports that Grok 4 Fast consumes roughly 40 percent fewer thinking tokens on average compared with Grok 4. In addition, the firm claims a 98 percent reduction in the price needed to achieve the same performance on frontier benchmarks. These savings apply whether the model is used for code generation, web browsing, or other quick‑response tasks.
Unified Architecture
The new model employs a unified architecture that can transition between two operational modes. The "reasoning" mode handles complex requests that require deeper analysis, while the "non‑reasoning" mode delivers rapid answers for simpler queries. This design mirrors approaches used by other leading AI developers, offering flexibility without requiring separate models.
Performance Benchmarks
Independent testing on the LMArena platform, which compares AI models side by side, placed Grok 4 Fast at the top of the leaderboard for search‑related tasks and eighth for text‑related tasks. These results suggest the model excels in information‑retrieval scenarios while remaining competitive in broader language tasks.
Availability and Market Context
xAI has made Grok 4 Fast accessible to all users, including those on the free tier, across web, iOS and Android platforms. The rollout comes as the large‑language‑model race intensifies, with competitors such as Google and Anthropic expected to release updated versions of their own models in the near future.