Grok 4 prepares for launch: what xAI’s new model means for AI and coding

Elon Musk announces that Grok 4 is almost ready, with just the last stage of specialized training underway after a night of intense work by the xAI team.

In the latest development that has drawn the attention of both technology enthusiasts and business users worldwide, Elon Musk personally confirmed on his social platform X that the long-awaited Grok 4 model is just a step away from release, with the xAI engineering team working throughout the night to complete the training of its advanced coding module. Musk’s public updates, which have become a hallmark of xAI’s open communication style, signaled that as soon as this crucial component is finished, users can expect the new version to roll out immediately after the July 4th holiday. This direct interaction between company leadership and the user community continues to shape expectations, creating a sense of anticipation and transparency that is increasingly rare among leading AI firms.

The arrival of Grok 4 brings a specialized coding model, showing xAI’s intention to compete with the best for business, developer, and enterprise applications

Unlike its predecessors, Grok 4 introduces a dedicated coding-focused sub-model, an approach that places the new release in direct competition with high-end AI products such as Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini Ultra, both of which have made recent advances in code generation and logic-based reasoning. According to technical notes and build information leaked from internal xAI sources—such as the ‘grok-4-code-0702’ version—this model is engineered to excel not just at general language understanding but also at extracting complex data from documents, summarizing large volumes of information, and producing robust, multi-language code snippets that can be implemented with minimal risk of hallucinations or errors. By moving decisively in this direction, xAI is making a clear statement: the new Grok will be an essential tool not just for casual users but for programmers, analysts, and business professionals who depend on reliable AI for mission-critical tasks.

The price of access increases: Grok 4 continues xAI’s premium-tier strategy with a $40 monthly subscription for X Premium+ users

When xAI introduced Grok 3, it did so with a significant price hike—raising the monthly subscription for X Premium+ from $22 to $40 and making the newest Grok model an exclusive feature for the most committed users. This business model, which continues with Grok 4, positions advanced conversational AI as a premium product, reserved for those willing to pay for the best possible access and performance. The clear message here is that the future of cutting-edge AI may not be free or cheap; instead, it will likely be a service with a price tag that reflects its value for professionals, developers, and organizations seeking real business impact.

Grok 4’s technical ambitions: internal benchmarks and early tests suggest it will challenge or surpass GPT-4o and Gemini Ultra, especially for reasoning and code accuracy

In recent months, xAI has released data from its internal testing and competitive “arena” evaluations, where previous Grok versions already broke records for accuracy and overall performance in head-to-head comparisons with industry leaders like GPT-4o. Grok 3, for example, was the first to cross the 1400-point threshold on the Chatbot Arena benchmarks, demonstrating strength in language comprehension and problem-solving. Now, with Grok 4 set to leverage an even larger compute budget—reportedly using up to 200,000 GPUs for training—there is widespread expectation that the model will set a new standard for code quality, reasoning, and reliability, particularly for enterprise users and developers who depend on AI not just for conversation but for production-ready results.

Grok’s voice features and character “Personas” move toward more natural and dynamic AI interaction for everyone, not just advanced users

A major part of Grok’s evolution is its expansion into fully multimodal communication, which means users can interact by text, voice, and even image. Since May, Android users have been able to use Voice Mode for free, selecting from a growing list of “Personas” that give the chatbot a specific tone or role—ranging from formal to playful or even “unhinged”—and switching to camera-based Vision tools for on-the-fly image recognition and scene analysis. This functionality is expected to continue in Grok 4, providing both mainstream and power users with unprecedented flexibility and interactivity, turning the chatbot into an adaptable assistant for work, study, and everyday life.

xAI expands Grok beyond X, with partnerships like Telegram and Tesla showcasing Grok’s ambitions as a universal conversational platform

The influence of Grok is not limited to the X platform, as recent deals and code leaks indicate that xAI is working to embed Grok as a foundational AI layer across a wide range of digital environments. A major partnership with Telegram, reportedly worth $300 million in cash and equity, will see Grok integrated into the messaging app used by a billion people worldwide, while firmware updates from Tesla suggest that Grok’s conversational and voice-control abilities are set to become standard features for in-car systems. These moves point to xAI’s intention to make Grok not just a chatbot, but a core technology that powers interaction across devices, platforms, and industries.

Content and policy boundaries remain a challenge, as Grok’s flexible modes and lighter filters create both excitement and controversy

A unique aspect of Grok’s design is its willingness to experiment with content policy, offering user-selectable modes such as “Unhinged” and “Sexy” that reduce filtering and allow for more candid or even provocative conversation. While these options have driven user engagement and set Grok apart from more tightly-controlled rivals, they have also attracted criticism regarding potential safety risks, especially for younger users, and concerns over misinformation or offensive content. xAI continues to face the challenge of finding the right balance between user freedom and responsible moderation as it prepares for Grok 4’s wider deployment.

As Grok 4 prepares for its official launch, the world of AI looks ahead to a new phase of competition, innovation, and user-driven growth

With its focus on specialized coding, cross-platform voice interaction, premium positioning, and a willingness to push the boundaries of AI personality, Grok 4 is set to become one of the most closely-watched launches in the global chatbot market. Developers, business users, and technology observers are all watching closely as xAI aims to shift the competitive landscape and redefine what advanced conversational AI can deliver—not just as a tool for information, but as a true partner in productivity and innovation.

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