The most talked-about news in the tech world today is undoubtedly the launch of the Grok-3 large model by xAI. It is said that this AI model possesses human-like thinking capabilities, thanks to its use of "chain-of-thought" technology. This allows it to break down complex tasks layer by layer, similar to peeling an onion, and perform deep analysis—somewhat akin to OpenAI's o3 and Deepseek-r1.
When it comes to Grok-3, one cannot overlook its creator, Elon Musk. The tech mogul boldly declared Grok-3 as "the smartest AI on Earth," adding that it's "scary smart." He believes Grok-3's reasoning abilities are exceptionally powerful, and among all AI models tested so far, none can match it.
The Grok series was launched by Musk in 2023 with a clear goal: to challenge OpenAI's ChatGPT. Grok-1 was released in November 2023, followed by Grok-2 in August 2024. The latest iteration, Grok-3, represents the newest upgrade in the series.
Speaking of OpenAI, it is a leader in the AI field today. There is also a notable history between OpenAI and Musk, which is closely tied to the origins of Grok.
OpenAI was originally founded in 2015 in San Francisco by Sam Altman, Elon Musk, and five others, with an initial investment of $1 billion. At that time, OpenAI and Musk were in a "honeymoon phase." It is said that Sam wanted to attract top talent with high salaries, and Musk fully supported the idea! Joining OpenAI back then came with an annual salary of $300,000 and SpaceX stock options, making it a highly attractive package.
OpenAI's initial vision was to be a non-profit organization, open-sourcing its technology and developing AI for the benefit of humanity. However, over time, OpenAI shifted towards becoming a closed-source, for-profit company. This change disappointed Musk, who felt that OpenAI had lost its way and become a "subsidiary" of large corporations like Microsoft. Eventually, Musk was removed from the OpenAI board. Although he expressed willingness to continue investing, the rift had already formed, partly motivating his later creation of Grok.
In March 2019, OpenAI officially announced its transition from a "non-profit" to a "capped-profit" entity, with profits limited to 100 times the investment. Musk publicly criticized OpenAI, accusing them of forgetting their original mission, focusing solely on profits, and neglecting the potential risks of AI. He sarcastically suggested that OpenAI should rename itself "CloseAI."
On February 10 this year, Musk reportedly offered to acquire OpenAI for $97.4 billion, but the offer was rejected. Sam Altman countered by claiming he would acquire Musk's Twitter. Had Musk succeeded in acquiring OpenAI, he likely would have open-sourced it, which would have been a significant boon for the entire AI industry.
In summary, the release of Grok-3 is a major event in the AI world. The ongoing saga between Musk and OpenAI adds an extra layer of intrigue to the AI community. As for how powerful Grok-3 truly is, you can try it out for yourself!
Using Grok for Free on the Web
Official website: https://grok.com
Currently, the web chat feature is free and open to use without requiring login or payment. However, due to certain restrictions, users in some regions may need to use a VPN to access it.
Using the API to Call Grok
The API is compatible with the OpenAI SDK. Simply replace the API URL with https://api.x.ai/v1.
Then, create an API KEY on this page: https://console.x.ai.
Available models include: grok-2-latest, grok-2-vision-latest, and grok-3.