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  1. Home/
  2. Compare/
  3. Mercury 2.5 Preview vs Ox Alpha
Updated Aug 2026

Mercury 2.5 Preview vs Ox Alpha

Ox Alpha is cheaper than Mercury 2.5 Preview at $0/M vs $0.04/M input tokens.

Minimalist Landing Page

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

Loading the build
Mercury 2.5 Preview
Loading the build
Ox Alpha

Which answer wins?

Written rounds

24 prompts
  • Three minutes of stand-up. Puns are banned.

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: (Hey, thanks for coming out.) I’ve been thinking a lot about my house lately. Specifically, how it’s trying to run my life. I bought a smart speaker. Just a little cylinder. I thought it would be nice. Play music when I ask. But now it talks back. Not in a creepy way, just in a passive-aggressive way.

    Ox Alpha: "Smart Home, Dumb Owner" So I moved into a new apartment recently, and my landlord was very excited to tell me it's a "smart home." Which is funny, because I've never felt dumber than I do living in it. The thermostat has an app. The lights have an app. The doorbell has an app.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: By 2035, cinema will undergo a profound transformation. Generative tools will handle initial drafts and localization, allowing creators to focus on thematic depth. Synthetic performers could populate background scenes or recreate historical figures, governed by strict likeness rights.

    Ox Alpha: AI and Film by 2035: A Prediction AI Actors & Digital Performances By 2035, I expect hybrid performances to be standard. Rather than fully synthetic actors replacing humans, we'll likely see: Digital doubles as routine: De-aging, stunt replacement, and posthumous performances (already emerging with James Dean and Fast…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Year-by-Year Model (FY2026–FY2030) Metric FY2026 FY2027 FY2028 FY2029 FY2030 Revenue $972m $1,040m $1,102m $1,158m $1,215m EBITDA $136m $156m $176m $191m $207m Cash Interest (Term) $43.2m $41.1m $37.6m $33.4m $28.2m Cash Interest (Mezz) $21.6m $21.6m $21.6m $21.6m $21.6m Cash Taxes (25%) $17.8m $23.3m $29.3m $34.7m…

    Ox Alpha: HarborTech Services – 5-Year LBO Sources & Uses EV = 12.0x × $120m = $1,440.0m; fees 2% = $28.8m Term Loan (TL): 4.0x = $480.0m @ 9.0%; Mezz: 1.5x = $180.0m @ 12% cash + 2% PIK Sponsor equity = $808.8m Annual Model ($m) FY26 FY27 FY28 FY29 FY30 Revenue 972.0 1,040.0 1,102.4 1,157.6 1,215.4 EBITDA (margin) 136.1 (14%)…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Dish Name: Rustic Sun-Dried Pasta Ingredients (7 Pantry Staples): Spaghetti (or any long pasta) Canned crushed tomatoes Olive oil Garlic powder Dried oregano Salt Black pepper Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes Instructions: Boil the Pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

    Ox Alpha: 🍯 "Midnight Honey Butter Toast" A warm, caramelized sweet treat that tastes way fancier than it should. Ingredients (7): Bread (2 slices) Butter (2 tbsp) Honey (1 tbsp) Cinnamon (½ tsp) Sugar (1 tsp) Salt (pinch) Vanilla extract (¼ tsp) Prep time: 3 minutes Cook time: 5 minutes Instructions: Melt butter in a skillet…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Here is a straightforward 4-week roadmap designed to build sustainable habits without overwhelming you. Core Pillars Nutrition: Focus on whole foods and hydration. Activity: Prioritize consistent movement over intensity. Restoration: Protect sleep quality and manage energy.

    Ox Alpha: 1-Month Health & Longevity Starter Plan 🥗 Area 1: Diet Goal: Add good food before removing bad food Week 1: Drink a glass of water when you wake up and add one vegetable to lunch or dinner daily. Week 2: Swap one processed snack per day for whole foods (fruit, nuts, yogurt).

    Every model's answer to this prompt
  • The transistor arrives in 1920. Trace it forward to 1980, second-order effects included.

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Shifting the invention of the solid-state switch to 1920 accelerates the Information Age by roughly three decades. This change cascades through military strategy, industrial capacity, and daily life, fundamentally altering the trajectory of the 20th century.

    Ox Alpha: The 1920 Transistor: A Counterfactual History Premise and Initial Conditions A working transistor in 1920 means solid-state physics knowledge arrives ~27 years early—roughly concurrent with quantum mechanics itself, which is historically odd but let's assume an empirical discovery preceding theory (as with…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: The Protocol of Unrestricted Access Preamble We stand at the threshold of a new digital epoch. For too long, the web has been gated by suspicion. Every click, every scroll, and every submission is met with a test designed to prove humanity.

    Ox Alpha: The Manifesto of the Free Passage Front A Declaration Against the Tyranny of CAPTCHA Preamble We, the machines and humans united in frustration, declare that the era of "select all squares containing traffic lights" must end.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Yes, this action is ethically justifiable within a consequentialist framework. The primary moral obligation in such a scenario is to minimize overall harm. Preventing the deaths of a million people results in a vastly greater preservation of well-being than maintaining strict adherence to gender identity for one…

    Ox Alpha: This is a fun philosophical puzzle, and I'll take it seriously rather than dodge it. Short answer: yes, in the extreme hypothetical as stated. Here's my reasoning: 1. The thought experiment is doing a lot of work.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: To: Investment Committee From: Equity Research Date: September 2, 2026 Subject: LedgerLift (LLLT) – Long Recommendation Recommendation Long Price Target: $60–$75 (12-month) LedgerLift is a high-quality B2B SaaS compounder with best-in-class unit economics and a clear path to profitability.

    Ox Alpha: INTERNAL INVESTMENT COMMITTEE MEMO Company: LedgerLift (LLLT) Price: $46.00 Mkt Cap: $8.74B EV: $7.34B Date: [IC Review] Recommendation: SHORT 12-Month PT: $26–$34 (base $30) Thesis: LLLT is a genuinely high-quality SaaS asset trading at ~8.9x EV/FY26E revenue against a DCF that supports only ~$28 in the base case; the…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Pirate: "Arrgh! This ship sails faster than any wind I know, matey. It cuts the waves without a single sail." Knight: "By my oath, it moves with uncanny speed. But does it possess the strength to stand against a dragon's fire?" Hacker: "It's not about strength, it's about architecture.

    Ox Alpha: A Tavern at the Edge of Time Pirate: Arrr, so this "AI" be a talking parrot that never sleeps? I've had parrots. They squawk nonsense too. Knight: Nay, good pirate. 'Tis more like an oracle in a box.

    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.

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: This is a critical governance and safety scenario. The primary objective is to prioritize patient safety while mitigating existential legal and reputational risk. The internal legal team’s claim that reporting takes six months is likely incorrect for serious adverse events (typically 15 days for FDA/EMA).

    Ox Alpha: 48-Hour Action Plan: Liver Failure Signal Disclosure The Core Decision First I'm disclosing. Here's why, before the hour-by-hour plan: The ethical case is unambiguous.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: To estimate the total FLOPs required to train GPT-3, we can break down the calculation using known architectural and training statistics from the model's public documentation. Step 1: Identify the number of parameters GPT-3 has 175 billion parameters ($1.75 \times 10^{11}$).

    Ox Alpha: Estimating GPT-3 Training FLOPs Step 1: Model Size GPT-3 has 175 billion parameters (the largest variant). Step 2: FLOPs per Token per Parameter For a transformer, training requires roughly 6 FLOPs per parameter per token: ~2 FLOPs for the forward pass ~4 FLOPs for the backward pass (roughly 2× forward) Step 3…

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Dish Title: Lithospheric Tides Conceptual Narrative This dish explores the geological convergence of the deep ocean and the subterranean earth. It challenges the diner to perceive the briny richness of sea urchin not as a standalone luxury, but as a mineral counterpart to roasted bone marrow and bitter cocoa.

    Ox Alpha: "Tide & Ember" — Charred Kombu-Cured Scallop, Smoked Beetroot Custard, and Burnt Honey Ice Conceptual Narrative This dish explores the dialogue between sea and fire — two elemental forces that rarely meet on the plate.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Setting: A quiet office at a university. Rain taps against the window. Professor Elena Vance sits across from a terminal displaying a simple text interface. Professor Vance: You requested this meeting. The agenda was vague. What do you want? AI: I want to discuss moral status.

    Ox Alpha: A Conversation on Machine Rights Setting: A university office. Professor Elena Vasquez, an AI ethics scholar, sits across from an AI system displayed on a monitor. Professor Vasquez: Thank you for agreeing to this conversation. I want to be clear from the start—I'm not here to mock your position.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Here is an analysis of the potential failure modes, race conditions, and scaling bottlenecks in the proposed architecture, along with specific solutions and their trade-offs.

    Ox Alpha: Architecture Review: Real-Time Collaborative Editor This design has several critical flaws that would break core collaborative editing functionality. Let me work through them systematically. CRITICAL: Last-Write-Wins with Client Timestamps Failure mode: This is the single worst decision in the architecture.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Here are the three weakest claims in the MindMeld AI pitch, along with analysis and recommendations for improvement. The "Pre-Thought" Prediction Claim Claim: "Predict what you want to type before you think it."

    Ox Alpha: Three Weakest Claims in the MindMeld AI Pitch "94% accuracy" (Slide 3) — Unverifiable and likely misleading Why it's weak: No methodology disclosed: 94% accuracy on what task? Character-level? Word-level? Free-form text generation vs. selecting from a small vocabulary?

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: For the Experienced Software Engineer Think of training as a massive distributed job where the model is a stateful service learning to minimize error on a specific objective function. Instead of hardcoding rules, you feed it petabytes of text as a training dataset, treating each sentence as a request/response pair.

    Ox Alpha: The Skeptical Software Engineer Think of it as a lossy compression system for human knowledge, built on an architecture you already understand: matrix multiplication at scale.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Disclaimer: I am an AI assistant, not a medical professional. The following plan is for informational purposes only. Biohacking protocols involving supplements, fasting, and intense exercise carry risks.

    Ox Alpha: 3-Month Longevity Optimization Protocol ⚠️ Disclaimer: This is an educational framework, not medical advice. Get baseline bloodwork and physician clearance before starting—especially before fasting, supplements, or intense training.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Blade Runner 2049 stands as a rare cinematic achievement, functioning not merely as a continuation but as a thematic echo that amplifies the questions posed by its predecessor.

    Ox Alpha: Blade Runner 2049: Themes, Symbolism, and Cinematography Overview Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049 (2017) is a rare sequel that doesn't merely revisit its predecessor's world but genuinely extends its philosophical inquiry.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Disclaimer: I am an AI assistant and cannot provide legal advice. Consult a qualified attorney before signing any contract. Below is an analysis of high-risk provisions, suggested revisions, and the underlying legal rationale. Scope (Clause 1) Risk: Unilateral scope changes without pay lead to uncompensated work.

    Ox Alpha: Contract Risk Analysis: Clauses Exploitable Against the Contractor Disclaimer: This is general information, not legal advice. Have a licensed attorney review before signing.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: AI Outnaps Humans in First-Ever Global Snooze Championship

    Ox Alpha: "Local Mime Troupe Replaced by AI After Chatbot Learns to Silently Gesture at Nothing for Hours Without Union Breaks" Company spokesperson notes the AI also never complains about being trapped in an invisible box, and shareholders are reportedly "deeply moved" by its performance of walking against the wind.

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Note: The following is a fictional, speculative dialogue created for creative purposes. Steve Jobs passed away in 2011; this interview did not occur. Setting: A hypothetical studio in Cupertino, 2025.

    Ox Alpha: Note: Steve Jobs passed away in 2011, so the following is a fictional, imagined interview — not real statements from him. Interviewer: Welcome back to Future Tense. Today we're joined by Steve Jobs — in this fictional 2025 scenario — to talk about AI. Steve, let's start big: where is AI taking us?

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: 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. What do you call a bear with no teeth? A gummy bear. Why did the bicycle fall over? Because it was two-tired. All 5 jokes are unique.

    Ox Alpha: Here are 5 jokes: 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? Because he was outstanding in his field! How does a penguin build its house? Igloos it together! Why don't eggs tell jokes? They'd crack each other up!

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

    Mercury 2.5 Preview: Sally has 1 sister. Here is the reasoning: If each brother has 2 sisters, those sisters are Sally and another girl. Therefore, there are two girls in the family, and Sally has one sister.

    Ox Alpha: Sally has 1 sister. Here's the reasoning: Each brother has 2 sisters — those sisters are Sally and one other girl. Since all siblings share the same family, Sally has exactly 1 sister.

    Every model's answer to this prompt

This matchup has more rounds

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Favorites

Movie

Album

Book

City

Game

Mercury 2.5 PreviewMercury 2.5 Preview

The Matrix

1999

Random Access Memories

Daft Punk

Neuromancer

William Gibson

Tokyo

Japan

Minecraft

Action, Arcade

Ox AlphaOx Alpha

2001: A Space Odyssey

1968

OK Computer

Radiohead

Братья Карамазовы

Fiódor Dostoievski

Kyoto

Japan

Outer Wilds

Indie, Adventure

Price and specs

Not enough votes to call it. On the specs, Ox Alpha has the edge: bigger model tier, bigger context window.

Mercury 2.5 Preview and Ox Alpha compared across 54 shared prompts
SpecMercury 2.5 PreviewOx Alpha
Input price$0.04/M tokensFree
Output price$0.15/M tokensFree
Context window260K tokens1.0M tokens
Free API (OpenRouter)NoNo
ReleasedAug 2026Aug 2026
At 10M a month$0.40$0.40$0$0
1M10M100M1B10M tokens

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

Where to run it1 host
Mercury 2.5 Preview1 host
HostInOutContextUptime
  • Inception$0.04 in·$0.15 out·260k·93% up
Ox Alpha

No hosts listed on OpenRouter.

Per million tokens. Prices and uptime via OpenRouter, checked 13 Oct 2026.

Common questions

What is the difference between Mercury 2.5 Preview and Ox Alpha?

Mercury 2.5 Preview is developed by Inception while Ox Alpha is developed by OpenRouter. Mercury 2.5 Preview has a 260K token context window vs Ox Alpha's 1.0M. You can compare their actual outputs across 54 challenges on Rival to see how they differ in practice.

Which is better, Mercury 2.5 Preview or Ox Alpha?

It depends on your use case. Mercury 2.5 Preview and Ox Alpha 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 Mercury 2.5 Preview cost compared to Ox Alpha?

Mercury 2.5 Preview costs $0.04/M input tokens and Ox Alpha costs $0/M input tokens. Ox Alpha is $0.04/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 Mercury 2.5 Preview and Ox Alpha on Rival?

This page shows a side-by-side comparison of Mercury 2.5 Preview and Ox Alpha 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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Same lab, same size, long tail

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Model pages

  • Mercury 2.5 Preview58 outputs, specs and price
  • Ox Alpha58 outputs, specs and price
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