Peter Smith
⬤ xAI's Grok grabbed massive attention after fresh data confirmed its Grok 4.1 Fast model now sits at Number 1 on OpenRouter by token market share. The free version is crushing numerous paid alternatives, with the platform chart showing xAI in a commanding position at 1.72 trillion tokens processed — the biggest share among all measured companies.
⬤ The market-share breakdown shows just how dramatically Grok outpaced its rivals. Google models hit around 1.11 trillion tokens, while Anthropic models each clocked roughly 842 billion. OpenAI systems posted token counts between 353 billion and 576 billion. Other players like DeepSeek at 359 billion and Qwen at 6.9 billion stayed well behind xAI's numbers. What makes this even more striking is that Grok's free tier is beating paid options, proving Grok 4.1 Fast delivers exceptional value and draws massive usage.
⬤ These results point to surging demand for fast, budget-friendly AI systems as users chase both performance and easy access. Grok 4.1 Fast built momentum thanks to zero-cost availability, quick inference speeds, and growing presence in xAI's ecosystem. The chart makes Grok's dominance crystal clear, showing its token volume crushing both established commercial models and newer competitors.
⬤ Grok's climb to the top of OpenRouter's token rankings reveals shifting trends in how people pick AI models, with affordability, speed, and responsiveness driving choices. As hunger grows for high-volume inference and large-scale processing, moves like this could reshape how platforms design access levels, pricing plans, and product strategies. xAI's rapid rise shows how free, high-performance models can flip usage patterns and crank up competition across the AI landscape.
Peter Smith
