AI Model Release Tracker - Timeline of Major AI Models from 2022-2026

o4-mini vs Grok‑1

OpenAI
o4-mini
xAI
Grok‑1
Overview
CompanyOpenAIxAI
Release dateApr 16 2025Nov 3 2023
AccessProprietaryOpen Weight
Specifications
Parameters
Context window
Benchmarks
Nonsense detection
BullshitBench v2
8%
Timeline
Release gapGrok‑1 shipped 530 days before o4-mini

Which is better: o4-mini or Grok‑1?

o4-mini and Grok‑1 don't publish scores on any of the same benchmarks, so there's no direct head-to-head comparison. Grok‑1 shipped 530 days before o4-mini, so benchmark comparisons should account for the intervening progress.

o4-mini is proprietary, while Grok‑1 is open weight.

Direct benchmark comparisons are unavailable — o4-mini and Grok‑1 don't publish scores on any of the same benchmarks.

Frequently asked questions

When was o4-mini released?
o4-mini was released by OpenAI on Apr 16 2025.
When was Grok‑1 released?
Grok‑1 was released by xAI on Nov 3 2023.
Is o4-mini or Grok‑1 open source?
o4-mini is a proprietary model released by OpenAI. Grok‑1 is an open weight model released by xAI.

Other comparisons