Social media company X has reserved the use of its AI chatbot Grok to paying, premium customers since its launch in 2023, but it’s finally planning to roll out a free version. The catch? It’s only available to select users.
Specifically, while Grok Free is expected to be available to more regions soon, it’s currently only accepting sign-ups in New Zealand. The freemium tier will also be limited to handling 10 queries per two hours, and three image analysis questions per day.
If you’re interested in X’s unrestricted chatbot we cover everything you need to know about Grok’s free plan, including its features, limitations, and how it compares to complimentary versions offered by competitors like Gemini and ChatGPT.
X Is Testing a Free Version of its AI Chatbot Grok, In Select Locations
AI enthusiasts rejoice. X’s homegrown AI chatbot Grok is now available for free to select users, as part of an experiment to make use of the tool more widespread.
The chatbot, which gives users direct access to real-time information from X, was only previously available to X’s Premium subscribers. With paid users only representing 0.26% of X’s user base, the number of people currently benefiting from the chatbot is remarkably small – especially when compared to the millions of users currently using the free version of ChatGPT.
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The news broke over the weekend after several app researchers and regular users posted about X rolling out a free version of Grok to users in limited locations. While the social media company has been noticeably secretive about which regions will have access to the freemium plan, X confirmed it was testing access in New Zealand, with more rollouts likely to follow in the coming months.
BREAKING: X is updating Grok’s logo and making it FREE-TO-USE for the people who don’t subscribe to X Premium! pic.twitter.com/sXZBgrbNX2
— Nima Owji (@nima_owji) November 10, 2024
X’s latest move comes only a few months after Grok-2 and Grok-2 mini were released for paid users, and is understood to be a tactic to encourage Premium sign-ups by boosting usage on the platform.
What Can Grok AI’s Free Plan Actually Do?
Grok aims to distinguish itself from the crowded chatbot market in three main ways. Firstly, it’s trained on real-time information from X, enabling users to access live user-generated content on current events and trending topics. The chatbot also has fewer guardrails than many of its competitors, and lets users vary its output by switching between ‘regular’ and ‘fun mode’.
Grok’s free plan will offer all of these capabilities, making it an exciting proposition for users interested in testing out these unique features without forking out $8 per month for X premium. Like Grok Premium, the free tier will also be able to analyze and generate AI images and assist with coding and content-based processes, enabling it to be used for a wide variety of purposes.
Grok Free does have limitations, however. Aside from being limited to select locations, to get started with the free tool users will have to have an X account that is at least a week old, with a phone number attached. The free plan is also capped at answering 10 questions every two hours and analyzing three images per day.
How Might Grok’s Free Plan Compare to Established Free AI Chatbots?
Grok’s free plan will likely become available in the US in the coming months. But with so many other popular AI chatbots offering free plans – is it even worth giving it a spin?
Unlike Grok’s free tier, ChatGPT and Gemini’s free plan have no question limits – meaning that you can use the chatbots to streamline processes and answer queries until the cows come home. If it is image generation you’re interested in, Grok’s three-image ceiling is more generous than DALL-E’s limit of two a day. However, compared to Gemini, which currently lets you create an unlimited number of images for free, Grok’s capability is pretty restricted.
If you’re in a silly goofy mood, Grok’s ‘fun mode’ shortcut might sound appealing. However, while ChatGPT has attracted a lot of flack for lacking a sense of humor, you’re able to modify the output of most popular chatbots by entering a few targeted prompts, so it doesn’t really help it stand out from the competition.
With Gemini still struggling to consistently incorporate recent information into its responses, Grok’s real-time access to X content will give it a leg up for people using AI to brush up on recent events and online discourse. Its lack of guardrails might also suit users who believe that popular chatbots have lost their potency through red tape.
This being said, with X’s unrestricted chatbot repeatedly landing itself in hot water for churning out fake AI images and spreading harmful misinformation, this could easily act as a deterrent for those concerned about AI’s ethical ramifications.
See how Grok compares to other leading tools in our guide to the best AI chatbots.
