Small models have arrived: Ultra-low API costs enable consumer AI apps
bibryam · x · 2026-08-28
Calvin French-Owen shares experience with small models like GPT-5.6-luna and GLM 5.3, highlighting their extremely low cost (cents for complex tasks) and high speed (100 tps).
Industry Insights:
- Cost Barrier Removed: Building a personalized news site cost $1 with Sonnet-class models; small models drastically reduce this.
- Consumer App Revival: The traditional internet playbook (low-cost acquisition + ads) was hindered by high token costs in the AI era; small models make this viable again.
- Pareto Frontier: New models like GLM 5.3 offer new options in cost-performance trade-offs.
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