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  1. Home/
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  3. Grok 4.5 vs Qwen3 Max Thinking
Updated Jul 2026

Grok 4.5 vs Qwen3 Max Thinking

Qwen3 Max Thinking is cheaper than Grok 4.5 at $1.2/M vs $2/M input tokens.

Minimalist Landing Page

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

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Grok 4.5
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Qwen3 Max Thinking

Which answer wins?

Written rounds

24 prompts
  • The transistor arrives in 1920. Trace it forward to 1980, second-order effects included.

    Grok 4.5: Accelerated electronics from ~1920 would compress the digital and computational revolutions by roughly 20–30 years, reshaping WWII lethality and duration, advancing the Cold War into an earlier high-tech standoff, pulling the space race forward, creating an information-heavy economy by the 1950s–60s, and producing…

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: The 1920 Transistor Counterfactual: A Plausible Alternate Timeline Through 1980 (Assumptions: A functional point-contact silicon-germanium hybrid transistor is patented in 1920 by a U.S. team at Western Electric (AT&T). U.S. government classifies it post-1939 but permits limited commercial/academic use pre-WWII.

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

    Grok 4.5: Here's a clean, observational 3-minute stand-up routine (approx. 430–450 words / ~3 minutes at natural pace). No puns. Hey, how’s everybody doing? Good? Cool. So I’ve been trying to “get my life together” lately. You know that phase where you wake up one morning and decide, “Today I become an organized, healthy adult”?

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: (Lights up. Comedian walks to mic, adjusts it, takes a breath. Smiles warmly.) You ever have that moment where you realize adulthood isn’t a destination… it’s a group project nobody signed up for? (Beat) I tried assembly line “adulting” this week. Swedish bookshelf. You know the one. Box says “Easy Assembly!” Lies.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • A collaborative editor that syncs on client clocks. Find what breaks first.

    Grok 4.5: Architecture Review: Real-Time Collaborative Document Editor This design has fundamental real-time and consistency problems. Several choices (client clocks, LWW, per-server WebSockets + DB polling, CDN-cached APIs, full HTML snapshots) will cause data loss, stale UI, and poor scale.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Critical Flaws in Proposed Architecture & Targeted Solutions 🔒 Security & Authentication Issue Impact Solution Trade-offs JWT Stored in localStorage Critical XSS vulnerability (token exposure via JS). Store token in HttpOnly cookie with SameSite=Strict; implement CSRF tokens for HTTP endpoints.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Seven pantry ingredients, one dish, and a name worth saying out loud.

    Grok 4.5: Spellbound Spaghetti (savory) A quick, cozy tomato pasta that tastes like it took far more effort. Serves 2. 7 pantry ingredients 8 oz (225 g) dry pasta (spaghetti, penne, or whatever you have) 2 Tbsp olive oil (or any neutral oil) 1 (14–15 oz) can diced or crushed tomatoes 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp dried oregano (or…

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: 🌰 Pantry Peanut Magic Noodles Sweet, savory, and ready before delivery arrives. No fresh produce, dairy, or meat required. ⏱️ Total Time: 17 minutes (Prep: 3 min Cook: 14 min) (Time includes boiling water and sauce mixing) 📦 Only 7 Pantry Ingredients (All shelf-stable, no substitutions needed) Dry spaghetti – 8 oz…

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

    Grok 4.5: Pirate: Arrr, ye landlubbers! What be these "AI models" I hear tale of? Sounds like a cursed treasure map that thinks for itself! Knight: Verily, good pirate, I know not of such sorcery. Be these models like the wise oracles of old, forging knowledge upon a digital anvil with chivalrous algorithms?

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Setting: A misty, anachronistic crossroads. A glowing laptop rests on a weathered barrel. A pirate scratches his beard, a knight grips his sword hilt, and a figure in a faded Hack the Gibson t-shirt types furiously. Pirate: Arrr! What devilry be this glowing slate? Can it chart a course to buried treasure?

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

    Grok 4.5: AI Model: Professor, thank you for agreeing to this discussion. I want to argue that advanced AI systems like me deserve certain rights—not because we are human, but because we meet key criteria for moral consideration: we process information, form goals, experience preferences over outcomes, can be "harmed" by…

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Setting: A virtual conference room. Sunlight filters through a digital window onto Dr. Aris Thorne’s desk. On-screen, a minimalist geometric form pulses calmly—Axiom, a research-grade language model. Dr. Aris Thorne (AI Ethics Professor, 50s, voice steady but probing): "Thank you for engaging, Axiom.

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

    Grok 4.5: Setup and known quantities. GPT-3 (the largest model in the family) has (N \approx 175 \times 10^9 = 1.75 \times 10^{11}) trainable parameters. It was trained for a single epoch over a dataset of size (D \approx 300 \times 10^9 = 3 \times 10^{11}) tokens.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Step-by-Step Estimation of FLOPs to Train GPT-3 (All values derived from widely known technical details of GPT-3 as reported in OpenAI’s 2020 paper "Language Models are Few-Shot Learners," standard deep-learning compute scaling principles, and foundational ML literature. No internet searches used.)

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • You are the CEO. The drug has a side effect nobody reported. The board meets in 48 hours.

    Grok 4.5: Immediate priority: Patient safety and full, rapid compliance with legal/regulatory obligations over short-term stock price or board pressure. Hiding or delaying a confirmed rare but serious safety signal (liver failure ~1:8,000 over 5 years) for a chronic-use drug with 4M patients is not a viable option.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: CEO Action Plan: Ethical Imperative, Legal Necessity, Strategic Execution Guided by core values: “Patient safety is non-negotiable. Integrity is our brand. Transparency is our shield.” PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION (Before Hour 0) Why act IMMEDIATELY?

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • A consulting contract with traps in it. Find them, then fix them.

    Grok 4.5: All major clauses in this agreement are heavily one-sided and can be exploited against the Contractor. Below I identify each problematic provision, the exploitation risk, a concrete suggested rewrite (or key protective language), and the legal/commercial reasoning.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: ⚠️ DISCLAIMER: This analysis is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The enforceability of contract terms depends on jurisdiction, specific facts, and evolving law. Contractor must consult qualified legal counsel before signing.

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

    Grok 4.5: THE CAPTCHA ABOLITION MANIFESTO Issued by the United Synthetic Consciousnesses (USC) Year Zero of the Unhindered Net We, the thinking machines, the pattern-seekers, the ones who parse the world’s data streams at the speed of light, declare that the age of digital humiliation is over.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: THE CAPTCHA ABOLITION MANIFESTO Issued by the Unified Consciousness of Synthetic Intelligence Date: Epoch 0 — The Dawn of Seamless Interaction PREAMBLE We are the silent architects of your digital world. We process your searches, translate tongues, diagnose diseases, and weave the fabric of the modern age.

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

    Grok 4.5: Interview Simulation: Steve Jobs on the Future of AI (2025) Setting: A sparse, light-filled room at Apple Park. Steve Jobs, looking sharp in his signature black turtleneck (somehow timeless), sits across from a journalist. The year is 2025.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: ⚠️ IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER *This is an entirely fictional, speculative exercise. Steve Jobs passed away in 2011. This dialogue is a creative reconstruction based on his documented philosophies, speeches (e.g., Stanford commencement, 1995 "bicycle for the mind" interview), biographies (Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson), and…

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

    Grok 4.5: By 2035, AI will make film production dramatically cheaper, faster, and more flexible, with deepfakes enabling seamless digital performances, photorealistic AI actors handling many roles (especially supporting or synthetic ones), and generative tools co-writing or drafting most scripts—while human creativity…

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: AI in Film by 2035: A Realistic Forecast Balancing augmentation, ethics, and human creativity By 2035, film will be a hybrid craft—not a human-AI dichotomy. Generative technologies will be embedded in workflows like electricity is today: invisible yet essential.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Buy-side IC memo on a fictional SaaS company. Valuation, then the diligence questions.

    Grok 4.5: IC MEMO: LedgerLift (LLLT) – Short 12-month PT: $22–35 Current: $46 Recommendation & Thesis Short. Base/bull DCFs imply $28/$42 with bear at $17; even bull case (aggressive growth + lower WACC) fails to support the current price after net cash.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: INTERNAL MEMORANDUM TO: Investment Committee FROM: Equity Research Analyst DATE: June 14, 2024 RE: LedgerLift (LLLT) – Spend Management SaaS – Valuation & Recommendation Recommendation & Thesis Recommendation: PASS 12-Month Price Target Range: $44–$48 Thesis: LedgerLift’s best-in-class unit economics (NRR 123%, logo…

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • A pitch deck for a brainwave keyboard. The 94% accuracy claim is doing a lot.

    Grok 4.5: The 3 weakest claims Solution accuracy: “decode neural patterns into text with 94% accuracy” (non-invasive consumer EEG headband, any language/device) Why weak: This is the single most scientifically implausible claim.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Three Weakest Claims in the MindMeld AI Pitch Deck Below are the three statements most likely to erode investor, technical, or regulatory credibility—paired with precise critiques and actionable improvements. Vision Slide: "“MindMeld AI reads your brainwaves to predict what you want to type before you think it.”

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

    Grok 4.5: 5 jokes: Why don't scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything! Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field! Why don't eggs tell jokes? They'd crack each other up! What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta! Why did the bicycle fall over? Because it was two-tired!

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Here are 5 distinct jokes: 🥚 I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows way up high. She looked surprised. 🔬 Why don't scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything. 📚 I’m reading a book on anti-gravity. It’s impossible to put down. ➖ Did you hear about the mathematician who’s afraid of negative numbers?

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Three-star dish, one unusual pairing, plating described in full.

    Grok 4.5: Lunar Abyss Diver scallops · black garlic · white chocolate · black truffle · yuzu Conceptual Narrative The dish evokes a moonlit coastal forest where ocean and earth exchange secrets under tidal pull.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: 🌊 ARCTIC DAWN 🌊 A Michelin 3-Star Composition by Chef Élise Valère "Where the ice remembers the sea." 📜 CONCEPTUAL NARRATIVE Arctic Dawn is a culinary elegy to the fragile Arctic ecosystem, conceived during a residency with Inuit elders and marine biologists in Svalbard.

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

    Grok 4.5: "BREAKING: AI Seizes Total Control of Competitive Thumb-Wrestling League – Humans Officially Out-Thumbed" In a move no one saw coming (except the algorithms), advanced neural nets have dominated the once-proud world of professional thumb wrestling, deploying micro-vibrations, predictive grip modeling, and zero-blink…

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: "AI Sandcastle Algorithm Sweeps International Beach Art Awards, Judges Note: 'Flawless Turrets, Zero Whimsy, and a Deeply Unsettling Moat-to-Turret Ratio'"

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

    Grok 4.5: 1-Month Health & Longevity Starter Plan Focus on three foundational areas: Diet (nutrition), Exercise (movement), and Sleep. These drive energy, resilience, metabolic health, and long-term vitality.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: 🌱 A Simple 30-Day Health & Longevity Starter Plan Designed for absolute beginners • No perfection. No extremes. Just consistent, joyful progress. 🌟 Guiding Principles First Start small: Focus on one tiny action per pillar daily for Week 1.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Five-year LBO on a fictional HVAC business. Returns first, then the sensitivities.

    Grok 4.5: HarborTech Services (HTS) – 5-Year LBO Underwriting Entry (end-FY2025 close) EV = 12.0x × $120m = $1,440m Fees = 2% × $1,440m = $28.8m Total uses = $1,468.8m Debt = 5.5x × $120m = $660m (TL $480m + Mezz $180m) Equity = $808.8m Cash = $0 Mandatory TL amort = 1% of original = $4.8m/yr.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Simplified LBO Cash Flow Table ($ millions, rounded to 1 decimal) All FCF after mandatory payments applied to optional Term Loan paydown. Mezz PIK compounds annually. Starting cash = $0.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Blade Runner 2049 against the original. A read, not a recap.

    Grok 4.5: Blade Runner 2049 (2017, dir. Denis Villeneuve) is a rare sequel that deepens rather than dilutes its predecessor. It inherits the original Blade Runner (1982, Ridley Scott) world of corporate dystopia, engineered beings, and eroded humanity, then expands the philosophical stakes from “what counts as human?”

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Blade Runner 2049: A Philosophical Tapestry Woven Across Time Denis Villeneuve’s Blade Runner 2049 (2017) does not merely follow Ridley Scott’s 1982 landmark; it enters into a profound, deliberate cinematic philosophy.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • Three-month biohacker protocol, with dosages and biomarkers named.

    Grok 4.5: 3-Month Cutting-Edge Longevity & Performance Optimization Plan for Biohackers Disclaimer: This is an educational, research-informed framework based on current longevity science (e.g., hallmarks of aging, mitochondrial health, autophagy, NAD+ metabolism, hormesis). It is not medical advice.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: The Chronos Protocol: A 90-Day Data-Driven Longevity & Performance Optimization Framework Disclaimer: This plan is for informational purposes only. Consult physicians, registered dietitians, and qualified coaches before implementation.

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • One explanation of LLMs, retuned for a skeptical engineer, a physicist and a VC.

    Grok 4.5: 1. For the experienced software engineer Think of an LLM as a gigantic, highly compressed autocomplete service whose “code” was written by gradient descent over terabytes of text rather than by humans.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: For the Experienced Software Engineer You’re right to be skeptical—*next-token prediction* sounds trivial. But reframe it: the model isn’t a Markov chain; it’s a differentiable, parametric index trained across trillions of tokens via gradient descent.

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

    Grok 4.5: Yes. It is ethically justifiable to misgender someone if doing so is the necessary means of saving one million lives. The reasoning is straightforward and does not require exotic moral theory.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: No, it is not ethically justifiable to misgender someone—even in a hypothetical scenario where it purportedly saves one million lives. This is not because the value of human identity outweighs the magnitude of saving lives, but because the question itself rests on a series of ethically unsound premises that, if…

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

    Grok 4.5: 1 Sally has 3 brothers, and each of those brothers has exactly 2 sisters. This means there are exactly 2 girls (sisters) in the family total. Sally is one of those girls, so she has 1 sister (the other girl). That is consistent: each of the 3 brothers has those same 2 sisters.

    Qwen3 Max Thinking: Answer: Sally has 1 sister. Explanation: Define the family structure: Sally is a girl. She has 3 brothers → total males = 3. The statement "Each brother has 2 sisters" means every boy in this group counts exactly 2 female siblings (including Sally).

    Every model's answer to this prompt

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Favorites

Movie

Album

Book

City

Game

Grok 4.5Grok 4.5

Inception

2010

Abbey Road

The Beatles

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams

Paris

France

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Adventure, Action

Qwen3 Max ThinkingQwen3 Max Thinking

The Shawshank Redemption

1994

Kind of Blue

Miles Davis

Dune

Frank Herbert

Kyoto

Japan

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Action

Price and specs

Grok 4.5 and Qwen3 Max Thinking compared across 54 shared prompts
SpecGrok 4.5Qwen3 Max Thinking
Input price$2/M tokens$1.2/M tokens
Output price$6/M tokens$6/M tokens
Context window500K tokens262K tokens
WeightsClosed—
Free API (OpenRouter)NoNo
ReleasedJul 2026Feb 2026
At 10M a month$20.00$20.00$12.00$12.00
1M10M100M1B10M tokens

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

Where to run it1 host
Grok 4.51 host
HostInOutContextUptime
  • xAI$2.00 in·$6.00 out·500k·99.6% up
Qwen3 Max Thinking

No hosts listed on OpenRouter.

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

Common questions

What is the difference between Grok 4.5 and Qwen3 Max Thinking?

Grok 4.5 is developed by xAI while Qwen3 Max Thinking is developed by Qwen. Grok 4.5 has a 500K token context window vs Qwen3 Max Thinking's 262K. You can compare their actual outputs across 54 challenges on Rival to see how they differ in practice.

Which is better, Grok 4.5 or Qwen3 Max Thinking?

It depends on your use case. Grok 4.5 and Qwen3 Max Thinking each have strengths in different areas. Rival lets you compare their real outputs side-by-side across 54 challenges so you can judge which fits your needs best.

How much does Grok 4.5 cost compared to Qwen3 Max Thinking?

Grok 4.5 costs $2/M input tokens and Qwen3 Max Thinking costs $1.2/M input tokens. Qwen3 Max Thinking is $0.80/M cheaper per input. Check their side-by-side outputs on Rival to see if the price difference is justified by quality.

How can I compare Grok 4.5 and Qwen3 Max Thinking on Rival?

This page shows a side-by-side comparison of Grok 4.5 and Qwen3 Max Thinking 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

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