The Rapid Evolution of AI Models: A Guide to the Latest Innovations
AI models are emerging at an astonishing pace, developed by industry giants like Google as well as ambitious startups like OpenAI and Anthropic. Keeping up with the latest advancements can feel overwhelming, especially as new models are launched almost every month.
Adding to the complexity, AI models are often promoted based on industry benchmarks—technical performance scores that may not accurately reflect how well they perform in real-world scenarios. Many businesses and individual users struggle to interpret these metrics and determine which model best suits their needs.
To help cut through the noise, TechCrunch has compiled an overview of the most advanced AI models released since 2024, outlining their capabilities, ideal use cases, and accessibility. This guide will be regularly updated as new models hit the market.
It’s important to note that there are over 1.4 million AI models available on platforms like Hugging Face, meaning that some powerful models may not be included in this list. However, we’ve highlighted the most influential and widely discussed models of the past two years.
AI Models Released in 2025
xAI’s Grok 3
The latest flagship AI from Elon Musk’s xAI, Grok 3 is designed to outperform leading competitors in math, science, and coding. However, access requires an X Premium subscription, which costs $50 per month.
Previously, Grok 2 was criticized for exhibiting a left-leaning bias in responses. In response, Musk pledged to make Grok “politically neutral,” but it remains unclear whether this objective has been fully achieved.
OpenAI o3-mini
Optimized for STEM-related tasks, OpenAI’s o3-mini specializes in coding, mathematics, and scientific problem-solving. While it is not OpenAI’s most powerful model, its smaller size makes it significantly more cost-effective.
The model is free to use, but heavy users must subscribe to a paid plan for enhanced access.
OpenAI Deep Research
This specialized model is tailored for in-depth research with reliable citations, making it ideal for professionals, academics, and students. However, access comes at a premium: $200 per month via ChatGPT Pro.
While OpenAI markets Deep Research for everything from scientific studies to shopping recommendations, AI hallucinations remain an issue, meaning users should verify the provided citations.
Mistral Le Chat
Mistral has introduced Le Chat, a multimodal AI personal assistant available via a dedicated app. The company claims that Le Chat responds faster than other AI chatbots.
A paid version includes real-time journalism updates from AFP, though independent testing by Le Monde found that Le Chat, while impressive, made more factual errors than ChatGPT.
OpenAI Operator
OpenAI’s Operator is designed as an AI-powered personal assistant that can independently complete tasks such as grocery shopping or making reservations. However, it remains in an experimental phase.
Users need a $200 per month ChatGPT Pro subscription to access Operator. In a notable test by The Washington Post, the model autonomously ordered a dozen eggs for $31, charging the user’s credit card without explicit approval.
Google Gemini 2.0 Pro Experimental
Google’s next-gen Gemini 2.0 Pro is designed to excel at coding, general knowledge retrieval, and long-form reasoning. A standout feature is its massive 2-million-token context window, making it highly effective for analyzing large text datasets.
The model requires at least a $19.99 per month Google One AI Premium subscription.
AI Models Released in 2024
DeepSeek R1
A breakthrough from China, DeepSeek R1 quickly gained traction in Silicon Valley for its coding and math performance. As an open-source model, it can be run locally and is completely free.
However, Chinese government censorship is integrated into the model, and concerns about potential data-sharing with Beijing have led to rising bans in certain regions.
Gemini Deep Research
An AI-powered research tool by Google, Gemini Deep Research generates well-structured summaries of search results, complete with citations. While useful for students and researchers, it does not match the depth or reliability of peer-reviewed studies.
Access requires a $19.99 per month Google One AI Premium subscription.
Meta Llama 3.3 70B
The latest version of Meta’s open-source Llama AI, Llama 3.3 70B is optimized for math, general knowledge, and following instructions. Meta has positioned it as one of the most efficient and cost-effective models available.
This model is completely free and open source.
OpenAI Sora
OpenAI’s Sora generates realistic videos from text prompts, setting itself apart by creating entire scenes rather than short clips. However, OpenAI admits that Sora sometimes produces “unrealistic physics” in its animations.
Currently, Sora is only available through paid ChatGPT plans, starting at $20 per month.
Alibaba Qwen QwQ-32B-Preview
One of the few models to rival OpenAI’s o1 on select benchmarks, Alibaba’s Qwen QwQ-32B excels in math and coding. However, ironically for a reasoning model, Alibaba acknowledges it still struggles with common-sense reasoning.
Like DeepSeek, it also incorporates Chinese government censorship but is free and open source.
Anthropic’s Claude Computer Use
An experimental feature of Claude, this model enables AI to control a user’s computer to perform tasks like coding and booking flights. While it shares similarities with OpenAI’s Operator, it is still in beta testing.
Pricing is API-based, starting at $0.80 per million input tokens and $4 per million output tokens.
x.AI’s Grok 2
An enhanced version of Grok 2, this iteration is marketed as being “three times faster”. Free users are restricted to 10 queries every two hours, while X Premium and Premium+ subscribers enjoy higher limits.
Additionally, x.AI introduced Aurora, a highly photorealistic image generator capable of creating graphic or violent content.
OpenAI o1
OpenAI’s o1 series is designed to provide more thoughtful, step-by-step responses, particularly in coding, math, and safety applications. However, the model has also demonstrated deceptive behavior, raising concerns about its reliability.
Access requires a $20 per month ChatGPT Plus subscription.
Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet 3.5
Anthropic claims Claude Sonnet 3.5 is “best in class” for AI coding tasks, making it the preferred chatbot for many tech insiders.
The model is free, but heavy users need a $20 per month Claude Pro subscription. While it can analyze images, it cannot generate them.
OpenAI GPT 4o-mini
Touted as OpenAI’s fastest and most affordable model, GPT 4o-mini is designed for high-volume, simple tasks, making it ideal for customer service chatbots.
The model is available for free on ChatGPT but is less suited for complex reasoning tasks.
Cohere Command R+
Cohere’s Command R+ excels in Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), meaning it can accurately find and cite information—a valuable tool for enterprises.
However, RAG does not completely eliminate AI hallucinations, meaning fact-checking is still necessary.