SpaceXAI, Cursor release the strongest Grok yet

2026-07-09 · Source: The Rundown AI · Field: Technology & Digital — Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Emerging Technologies & Innovation · Depth: Advanced, medium

Summary

SpaceXAI and Cursor jointly released Grok 4.5, a new large language model demonstrating strong performance in coding, agentic, and knowledge work tasks, with benchmarks comparable to Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT 5.5. This model operates at 80 tokens per second, rivaling flash models, and boasts a 4x efficiency gain over Opus 4.8. Priced at \$2/\$6 per million input/output tokens, significantly undercutting Opus 4.8's \$5/\$25, Grok 4.5 is temporarily free within Cursor and Grok Build. Elon Musk announced an even larger model is expected next month. OpenAI also introduced GPT-Live, a full-duplex voice model for ChatGPT, enabling more natural, real-time conversations and simultaneous translation. ByteDance launched Seedream 5.0 Pro, an image model focused on design work with precision editing and multilingual capabilities.

Key takeaway

For AI Engineers evaluating large language models for deployment, Grok 4.5 presents a compelling option due to its competitive performance, 80 tokens/second speed, and significantly lower pricing at \$2/\$6 per million tokens compared to rivals. You should consider integrating Grok 4.5 into your workflows, especially for tasks requiring high efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and explore its free usage within Cursor and Grok Build.

Key insights

Grok 4.5 re-establishes Grok as a competitive frontier model with high performance, speed, and cost efficiency.

Principles

• Full-duplex architecture enhances voice AI naturalness.
• AI image models can "understand design" for editing.
• Strategic acquisitions can yield bidirectional model gains.

Method

To add CGI to video with Higgsfield: select a short video with clear subjects, draft a specific CGI prompt using ChatGPT, then upload the clip and prompt to Gemini Omni Flash in Higgsfield to generate and review the edit.

In practice

• Use Grok 4.5 for cost-effective coding and agentic tasks.
• Experiment with GPT-Live for real-time voice interactions.
• Apply Seedream 5.0 Pro for advanced image design editing.

Topics

• Grok 4.5
• Large Language Models
• Voice AI
• GPT-Live
• Image Generation
• Seedream 5.0 Pro
• AI Efficiency

Code references

• neely3d-rgb/ViewGen

Best for: CTO, VP of Engineering/Data, Machine Learning Engineer, AI Scientist, AI Engineer, Director of AI/ML

Related on AIssential

• Grok 4.5 — Everything You Need To Know — Grok 4.5 demonstrates significant performance gains and cost efficiency through architectural redesign and massive parameter scaling.
• SpaceXAI and Cursor Launch Grok 4.5, Tout Lower Costs Than Rivals — Grok 4.5, a joint SpaceXAI/Cursor model, targets coding and agentic work with lower operational costs.
• Codex is gaining steam — AI platforms are evolving to be more accessible to non-technical users and offer competitive performance-to-cost ratios.
• Grok 4.5 is so cheap compared to Fable 5 and GPT 5.5 that benchmark gaps may not matter much — Grok 4.5 offers competitive performance at a significantly lower cost, challenging higher-priced LLMs.
• Grok 4.2: Powerful and Fast Coding Model! Most Powerful & Intelligent Model We've Seen? (Early Test) — Grok 4.2 is an upcoming model with enhanced multimodal capabilities and efficiency, despite some early coding limitations.
• SpaceX's Grok 4.5 launches at half the price of rivals — here's why that could rattle Anthropic and OpenAI — SpaceX's Grok 4.5 disrupts the AI coding market by prioritizing cost-efficiency and speed over raw benchmark dominance.

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by The Rundown AI.