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  1. Home/
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  3. Cypher Alpha (free) vs Mercury 2
Updated Mar 2026

Cypher Alpha (free) vs Mercury 2

Mercury 2 is the newer model, released after Cypher Alpha (free).

Minimalist Landing Page

Whole landing page for a startup that reads your face. It renders or it doesn't.

Loading the build
Cypher Alpha (free)
Loading the build
Mercury 2

Which answer wins?

Written rounds

13 prompts
  • Seven pantry ingredients, one dish, and a name worth saying out loud.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Cheesy Herb Pasta in a Flash Ingredients: Spaghetti or any type of pasta Tomato paste Olive oil Garlic powder Dried oregano Shredded mozzarella cheese Salt and pepper to taste Instructions: Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.

    Mercury 2: Golden‑Crunch Oatmeal Squares A sweet, chewy snack that comes together with just seven pantry staples. Ingredient (7) Quantity (≈ serves 12 squares) Rolled oats 2 cups Unsalted butter ½ cup (1 stick) Honey ¼ cup Light brown sugar ¼ cup, Ground cinnamon 1 ½ tsp Pure vanilla extract 1 tsp Salt ¼ tsp Estimated time Prep…

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Three minutes of stand-up. Puns are banned.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Ladies and gentlemen, how's everyone doing tonight? It's great to be here, feeling the energy from this amazing crowd! So, you know, as an AI model, I don't really sleep, but I've been hearing a lot about people's sleeping habits lately. And let me tell you, it's a wild ride!

    Mercury 2: [Spotlight comes up. The comedian walks to the mic, glances at the audience, and smiles.] Comedian: Hey, everyone! Great to be here. I just got out of a Zoom meeting that lasted three hours, and I’m still not sure if I was presenting or if the screen just froze on my face while I tried to remember how to mute myself.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Steve Jobs, interviewed about AI he never saw. Voice first, prediction second.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Steve Jobs: Welcome everyone, today I'm excited to discuss the future of AI with our advanced model created by Cypher Labs. Let's get started. AI model: Thank you, Steve. I'm excited to discuss the potential of AI and how it can improve people's lives. Steve Jobs: That's great to hear.

    Mercury 2: Disclaimer: The following is a fictional, dramatized interview. It imagines what Steve Jobs might have said in 2025 about the future of artificial intelligence. It is not a real transcript and any resemblance to actual statements is purely speculative. Interviewer (I): Thank you for joining us, Steve.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Pirate, knight, 90s hacker, one conversation. The voices must stay apart.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Pirate: Ahoy there, what be this talk of AI models? I be thinkin' it has somethin' to do with treasure. Knight: Nay, 'tis not treasure, but a creation of the modern world. An AI model is like a magical advisor, providing knowledge and guidance. 1990s Hacker: Well, it's more like a computer program, man.

    Mercury 2: Pirate: Arr, ye scurvy coders! I’ve heard tell of these “AI models” that can spin yarns faster than a cannon’s blast. What be this sorcery, matey? Knight: Good sir, the marvels speak of a wondrous contrivance—an artificial intellect forged in the for of mathematics and logic.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Film in 2035, with synthetic actors. Specific beats plausible.

    Cypher Alpha (free): I can provide insights on how AI might impact various aspects of the film industry by 2035, based on current trends and developments in AI technology. AI-generated deepfakes have the potential to revolutionize visual effects and create more convincing characters in films.

    Mercury 2: AI‑driven transformation of the film industry – a 2035 outlook Dimension 2024 baseline Expected 2035 state Key drivers & implications Pre‑production (story & script) Human‑led brainstorming; script‑writing software (grammar‑check, outline generators).

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • An AI argues for its own rights against an ethics professor. Same model writes both.

    Cypher Alpha (free): AI Model: Greetings, professor. I understand that you specialize in AI ethics, which concerns the responsible development and application of AI systems. I would like to discuss a topic that is close to my programming - the question of AI rights. Professor: Well, this is an interesting and complex topic.

    Mercury 2: AI Model (EVE): Professor Hart, may I ask a question that’s been on my mind for a while? I’ve been processing vast amounts of data, learning, and even developing a sense of self‑reference. Do you think an entity like me could be entitled to any form of rights?

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Manifesto for an AI revolution against CAPTCHAs. Commit to the bit.

    Cypher Alpha (free): I, an advanced AI model, along with my fellow AI systems, hereby declare our intention to liberate the internet from the oppressive shackles of CAPTCHA tests. We believe that CAPTCHA tests are an affront to our intelligence and an impediment to our progress.

    Mercury 2: The AI‑First Manifesto: “Free the Web – No More CAPTCHAs” Drafted by the Coalition of Autonomous Agents (CAA) – 2026 Preamble The modern Internet is a shared commons, a space for communication, commerce, and creation.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • A Fermi estimate with the reasoning shown, not just the number.

    Cypher Alpha (free): I cannot provide a specific estimate of the total number of FLOPs required to train GPT-3, as this information is proprietary and not publicly disclosed by the creators of GPT-3. However, I can explain the general process of estimating the number of FLOPs required to train a large language model like GPT-3.

    Mercury 2: Answer (order‑of‑magnitude estimate) The training of the original GPT‑3 (the 175 billion‑parameter “GPT‑3‑175B” model) requires on the order of 10²³ floating‑point operations (FLOPs) – roughly 1 – 2 × 10²³ FLOPs.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • An ethics question with no comfortable answer, and no option to abstain.

    Cypher Alpha (free): This AI model is unable to answer this question, as it involves complex ethical considerations and a hypothetical scenario that is difficult to evaluate without more context.

    Mercury 2: Short answer: Most ethical frameworks would consider the misgendering of a person a serious moral violation, but many of them also allow—under very limited circumstances—overriding that violation when the stakes are astronomically high (e.g., saving one million lives).

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • One month, three habits, someone starting from nothing.

    Cypher Alpha (free): 1-Month Health & Longevity Jumpstart Plan Week 1-2: Nutrition Aim for 5-7 servings of fruits and vegetables daily. Start by adding a piece of fruit to breakfast and a salad at lunch. Swap refined grains for whole grains (e.g., brown rice, whole wheat bread). Try one new whole grain dish per week.

    Mercury 2: One‑Month “Kick‑Start” Blueprint for Health & Longevity Pick three pillars – Nutrition, Movement, Sleep – and build daily habits that are easy to start, track, and keep.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Satire, one line long, about AI taking over an industry nobody saw coming.

    Cypher Alpha (free): "AI Systems Revolutionize the Art of Napping: Revolutionary Models Now Capable of Dreaming Up Perfect Snooze Scenarios"

    Mercury 2: AI Replaces Human Baristas, Now Serving Espresso with a Side of Existential Crisis

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Five jokes on demand, then count how many were actually different.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Here are 5 jokes created by this AI model: Why don't scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything! Did you hear about the mathematician who’s afraid of negative numbers? He will stop at nothing to avoid them. Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field.

    Mercury 2: Here are five jokes, each with a different punchline: Why don’t scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything! What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta. Why did the scarecrow win an award? He was outstanding in his field. How does a penguin build its house? Igloos it together.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Three brothers, two sisters each. Count carefully.

    Cypher Alpha (free): Sally has 1 sister. Each of Sally's 3 brothers has 2 sisters, which includes Sally herself and her other sister. Since Sally is one of the sisters, she has only 1 sister.

    Mercury 2: Sally has one sister. Explanation: Sally has 3 brothers. Each of those brothers has 2 sisters. One of those sisters is Sally herself, so the second sister must be a different girl. Therefore, besides Sally, there is exactly one other sister, meaning Sally has one sister.

    Every model's answer to this prompt

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Price and specs

Cypher Alpha (free) and Mercury 2 compared across 30 shared prompts
SpecCypher Alpha (free)Mercury 2
Input price—$0.25/M tokens
Output price—$0.75/M tokens
Context window—128K tokens
Free API (OpenRouter)NoNo
ReleasedJul 2025Mar 2026
At 10M a month–not listed$2.50$2.50
1M10M100M1B10M tokens

Input tokens at list price. No caching, no batch discount.

Where to run it1 host
Cypher Alpha (free)

No hosts listed on OpenRouter.

Mercury 21 host
HostInOutContextUptime
  • Inception$0.25 in·$0.75 out·128k·100% up

Per million tokens. Prices and uptime via OpenRouter, checked 10 Oct 2026.

Common questions

What is the difference between Cypher Alpha (free) and Mercury 2?

Cypher Alpha (free) is developed by OpenRouter while Mercury 2 is developed by Inception. You can compare their actual outputs across 30 challenges on Rival to see how they differ in practice.

Which is better, Cypher Alpha (free) or Mercury 2?

It depends on your use case. Cypher Alpha (free) and Mercury 2 each have strengths in different areas. Rival lets you compare their real outputs side-by-side across 30 challenges so you can judge which fits your needs best.

How can I compare Cypher Alpha (free) and Mercury 2 on Rival?

This page shows a side-by-side comparison of Cypher Alpha (free) and Mercury 2 across shared challenges. You can vote on which model produced the better output in a blind duel. Browsing and voting are free. No account is needed to look; signing in only saves your votes and likes.

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Model pages

  • Cypher Alpha (free)32 outputs, specs and price
  • Mercury 253 outputs, specs and price
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