Every's guide to open models: when commodity AI beats frontier, and owning your AI stack
danshipper · x · 2026-10-02
Dan Shipper's team at Every published a practical guide to getting started with open models, arguing AI has become commodity intelligence: for most routine work, today's open models are competitive on both price and quality.
Key points:
- Frontier models race ahead in niche areas like research math and cybersecurity while getting pricier and more locked down; the practical question is which model is good enough for your task.
- The author has used open models since Llama's 2023 debut; they now handle a growing share of his work, from professional coding to automating digital chores.
- The bigger prize is independence — owning your AI stack rather than relying on closed APIs.
- Includes a framework for when you should still reach for frontier models.
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