Elon Musk’s xAI Unveils Grok 3 AI Model, Claims Edge Over OpenAI and DeepSeek

Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, has introduced its latest model, Grok 3, which the company asserts outperforms rival systems from OpenAI and China’s DeepSeek in early evaluations. The unveiling took place Tuesday during a demonstration streamed on Musk’s social media platform, X.

“We’re very excited to present Grok 3, which is, we think, an order of magnitude more capable than Grok 2 in a very short period of time,” Musk said during the event.

Grok 3 is designed to handle complex reasoning tasks across disciplines such as mathematics, science, and programming. According to xAI, the model surpassed competitors in internal testing and received high ratings on Chatbot Arena, a platform that conducts blind evaluations of AI systems.

The new model is being rolled out to premium subscribers on X in the United States, with additional access offered through a standalone web and app subscription.

“Scary Smart” Model and New Search Tool

Musk described Grok 3 as “scary smart” during a speech at The World Governments Summit in Dubai last week, emphasizing its advanced reasoning capabilities. He highlighted the model’s use of synthetic data and self-reflection techniques to enhance logical consistency.

xAI also announced the launch of “Deep Search,” described as a next-generation search engine designed to deliver more accurate and context-aware results.

While demonstrating Grok 3, Musk noted that development would continue to refine the system. “We should emphasize that this is kind of a beta, meaning that you should expect some imperfections at first, but we will improve it rapidly, almost every day,” he said. He added that a voice assistant feature for Grok 3 is planned for future release.

Growing AI Rivalry

The release comes as competition in the AI sector intensifies. OpenAI, a company Musk co-founded in 2015, introduced its GPT-4-based model, the “o1,” last year, which showcased strong problem-solving abilities in coding, math, and science.

However, tensions have grown between Musk and OpenAI leadership, culminating in a $97.4 billion buyout offer from Musk’s group, which OpenAI declined.

DeepSeek, a Chinese startup, further stirred the market last month by claiming its open-source model rivaled OpenAI’s technology, despite using a more cost-effective approach. This development was notable as China faces restrictions on advanced Nvidia chips essential for training AI systems.

xAI, however, has significantly bolstered its computing resources. The company disclosed Tuesday that it had doubled its GPU cluster to 200,000 Nvidia units for Grok 3’s training, up from 100,000 in 2023.

What’s Next?

While experts acknowledge DeepSeek’s innovative approach, some remain cautious about its broader impact. Musk’s xAI aims to keep pace in this fast-evolving field, with Musk suggesting Grok 3 could represent a pivotal step. “This might be the last time that an AI is better than Grok,” he said.

With Grok 3 now live for U.S. users and the Deep Search tool in development, xAI positions itself as a growing force in the competitive AI landscape.