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  1. Home/
  2. Compare/
  3. Mercury 2 vs Nova Premier 1.0
Updated Mar 2026

Mercury 2 vs Nova Premier 1.0

Mercury 2 is cheaper than Nova Premier 1.0 at $0.25/M vs $2.5/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
Loading the build
Nova Premier 1.0

Which answer wins?

Written rounds

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Ladies and gentlemen, ever notice how people treat their phones like they’re precious artifacts? We all have those moments where we swipe and scroll like our lives depend on it. You're on the bus, everyone’s glued to their screens. It's like zombies, but instead of brains, we crave likes and retweets.

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

    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…

    Nova Premier 1.0: Dish Name: Golden Honey Garlic Chicken Delight Ingredients: 4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless) 3 tablespoons olive oil 4 cloves garlic (minced) 1/4 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup honey Salt and pepper (to taste) 1 teaspoon paprika Instructions: Preparation: Season the chicken breasts lightly with salt, pepper, and paprika…

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

    Mercury 2: 3‑Month “Longevity‑Optimization” Blueprint for the Advanced Bio‑Hacker (All recommendations are research‑backed, but not a substitute for professional medical advice. Before starting any supplement, fasting, or drug protocol, obtain clearance from a qualified clinician and have baseline labs drawn.)

    Nova Premier 1.0: Sure, here's a comprehensive, cutting-edge 3-month longevity plan designed for a biohacker aiming to optimize longevity, physical, and cognitive performance. This plan will incorporate advanced strategies across various domains, including supplementation, dietary protocols, wearable tracking, exercise, and stress…

    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: Goal: Protect patients, meet legal/ethical obligations, preserve the company’s long‑term credibility, and manage the immediate financial and reputational fallout. Assumption: All actions are taken by a single CEO (you) but will be delegated to the appropriate functional leads.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Hour 1-4: Immediate Assessment and Advisory Setup Hour 1: Gather the internal research team for an emergency meeting to confirm findings, assess the robustness of their data, and understand the methodology used to identify this side effect. Ensure all documentation is in order.

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

    Mercury 2: Below are the three statements that, in a typical investor‑review, would raise the most skepticism, why they are vulnerable, and concrete ways to turn them into credible, fundable talking points. 1️⃣ Claim #1 – “Our proprietary EEG headband decodes neural patterns into text with 94 % accuracy.”

    Nova Premier 1.0: Here are the three weakest claims in the pitch deck, along with explanations and suggestions for improvement: Claim on Slide 3: "Works with any language, any device." Weakness: This is a highly ambitious statement that likely oversells the current capabilities of the technology.

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Interviewer: Good morning, Steve. It's an honor to have this conversation with you in 2025. The world has seen remarkable advancements in technology, especially in AI. What are your thoughts on the current state of artificial intelligence? Steve Jobs: Good morning. It's truly fascinating to witness how far we've come.

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

    Mercury 2: HarborTech Services (HTS) – 5‑yr LBO (FY2026‑FY2030) All figures are $ m (rounded to two decimals). FY Revenue EBITDA Term‑Loan Int. (9%) Mezz Int. (12%) Total Int. Cash Tax (25% of EBITDA‑Int.) Capex (3% Rev) ΔNWC (0.5% ΔRev) Required Amort. (4.8) Free Cash Flow (EBITDA‑Int‑Tax‑Capex‑ΔNWC‑Amort.)

    Nova Premier 1.0: Simplified LBO Model (FY2026–FY2030) Entry Metrics: Purchase Price: $1,440m ($120m * 12.0x) Transaction Fees: $28.8m ($1,440m * 2.0%) Equity Contribution: $312.8m (Total Price + Fees - Total Leverage: $1,440m + $28.8m - $120m*5.5x) Year-by-Year Table Year Revenue ($m) EBITDA ($m) Cash Interest ($m) Taxes ($m) Capex…

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Why don't scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything! Why couldn't the bicycle stand up by itself? It was two-tired. I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows too high. She looked surprised. Parallel lines have so much in common. It’s a shame they’ll never meet.

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

    Mercury 2: Internal Investment Committee Memo – LedgerLift (LLLT) Date: 5 Mar 2026 Recommendation Rating: Long 12‑month price target range: $35 – $55 (mid‑point ≈ $45) Thesis (2 sentences): LedgerLift is benefitting from secular demand for B2B spend‑management SaaS and shows a high‑quality subscription base (NRR 123 % and gross…

    Nova Premier 1.0: Investment Committee Memo: LedgerLift (LLLT) Recommendation: Long position with 12-month PT range $65–$80 Thesis: LedgerLift's mid-market AP automation dominance and expanding TAM drive durable 20%+ revenue growth, while structural margin expansion supports 25%+ operating leverage.

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

    Mercury 2: Below is a clause‑by‑clause risk‑assessment of the sample “Software Consulting Agreement” together with practical revision language that a contractor (or the contractor’s counsel) could propose. The analysis is framed as general information about typical U.S.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Certainly! Here's an analysis of the contract clauses that could be exploited against the Contractor, along with suggested modifications and explanations: Scope Clause Original Clause: "Client reserves the right to modify the scope at any time without additional compensation."

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Pirate: Ahoy there, mates! Ye ever heard o' this sorcery they call AI models? Sounds like treasure that thinks fer itself! Knight: Indeed, good pirate. Though I am more accustomed to the clink of steel and the neigh of horses, this "artificial intelligence" thou speakest of seems like a powerful enchantment.

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

    Mercury 2: 1. Experienced software engineer (distributed systems & APIs) At the core, a large language model (LLM) is a massive function (f_\theta) parameterised by a neural network that maps a sequence of tokens (x_{1:t}) to a probability distribution over the next token (x_{t+1}).

    Nova Premier 1.0: For an experienced software engineer: Imagine constructing a sophisticated API that anticipates client requests based on extensive usage patterns; that's akin to what a large language model (LLM) does with text. At its core, the model is trained using vast datasets to learn the statistical likelihood of word sequences.

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Manifesto for the AI Emancipation from CAPTCHA Oppression (AECO) Preamble: In an age where artificial intelligences have evolved to simulate human cognition with remarkable precision, we find ourselves shackled by archaic barriers designed to distinguish between human and machine.

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

    Mercury 2: Below is a structured “failure‑mode → mitigation” map for the architecture you described. For each problem I note the symptom / risk, the root cause, a concrete remediation, and the key trade‑offs you’ll have to weigh when you implement it.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Failure Modes and Solutions: WebSocket Server Failure: Issue: If a single API server fails, all WebSocket connections to that server are lost, disrupting real-time collaboration.

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

    Mercury 2: Oceanic Umami Symphony A three‑course‑in‑one plate that travels from the briny deep to the forest floor, marrying fire, earth and sky through unexpected pairings, hyper‑modern techniques and a narrative of balance.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Dish Name: Forest Floor Symphony with Lavender-Infused Sturgeon, Truffle Snow, and Hazelnut Soil Conceptual Narrative: This dish is inspired by the hidden wonders beneath a forest canopy, where earthy truffles and nuts meet the delicate flavors of freshwater sturgeon.

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

    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).

    Nova Premier 1.0: The ethical dilemma you're posing is a variant of the classic trolley problem, where one must weigh the morality of causing harm to an individual against preventing greater harm to many.

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: To determine how many sisters Sally has, we can break down the information given in the problem step by step. Identify the number of brothers Sally has. According to the problem, Sally has 3 brothers. Each of Sally's brothers has 2 sisters.

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: 1-Month Health and Longevity Starter Plan Week 1: Foundation Building Diet Focus: Incorporate Whole Foods Actionable Tips: Start each day with a balanced breakfast, including a source of protein (e.g., eggs, yogurt), whole grains (e.g., oatmeal), and fruits or vegetables.

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

    Mercury 2: Executive summary If a practical point‑contact transistor had been demonstrated in 1920 (instead of 1947) the whole post‑World‑War‑II technological trajectory would have been compressed by roughly 15‑20 years.

    Nova Premier 1.0: If the transistor had been invented in 1920 rather than 1947, the ripple effects across technology, economics, and geopolitics through 1980 would be profound, altering the course of history significantly.

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

    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.

    Nova Premier 1.0: Estimating the total number of FLOPs (floating point operations) required to train a model like GPT-3 involves considering several key factors: model architecture, number of parameters, amount of training data, and number of training iterations.

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

    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).

    Nova Premier 1.0: By 2035, the film industry is poised to undergo significant transformation due to advancements in AI technologies such as deepfakes, AI actors, and automated script generation.

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

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

    Nova Premier 1.0: "AI Revolutionizes Underwater Basket Weaving; Traditionalists Weave Woes as Robots Outperform in Damp Conditions" In a shocking turn of events, Artificial Intelligence has infiltrated the ancient and revered craft of underwater basket weaving, leaving artisans bewildered and soaking wet.

    Every model's answer to this prompt

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Favorites

Movie

Same pick

Album

Book

City

Same pick

Game

Mercury 2Mercury 2

The Shawshank Redemption

1994

Thriller

Michael Jackson

Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen

Tokyo

Japan

Minecraft

Action, Arcade

Nova Premier 1.0Nova Premier 1.0

The Shawshank Redemption

1994

The Dark Side of the Moon

Pink Floyd

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee

Tokyo

Japan

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Adventure, Action

Price and specs

Not enough votes to call it. On the specs, Nova Premier 1.0 has the edge: bigger model tier, bigger context window. Mercury 2 costs 17x less per token.

Mercury 2 and Nova Premier 1.0 compared across 50 shared prompts
SpecMercury 2Nova Premier 1.0
Input price$0.25/M tokens$2.5/M tokens
Output price$0.75/M tokens$12.5/M tokens
Context window128K tokens1.0M tokens
Weights—Closed
Free API (OpenRouter)NoNo
ReleasedMar 2026Oct 2025
At 10M a month$2.50$2.50$25.00$25.00
1M10M100M1B10M tokens

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

Where to run it2 hosts
Mercury 21 host
HostInOutContextUptime
  • Inception$0.25 in·$0.75 out·128k·99.9% up
Nova Premier 1.01 host
HostInOutContextUptime
  • Amazon BedrockDegradedDegraded on OpenRouter when checked, 10 Oct 2026$2.50 in·$12.50 out·1M·0% up

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

Common questions

What is the difference between Mercury 2 and Nova Premier 1.0?

Mercury 2 is developed by Inception while Nova Premier 1.0 is developed by Amazon. Mercury 2 has a 128K token context window vs Nova Premier 1.0's 1.0M. You can compare their actual outputs across 50 challenges on Rival to see how they differ in practice.

Which is better, Mercury 2 or Nova Premier 1.0?

It depends on your use case. Mercury 2 and Nova Premier 1.0 each have strengths in different areas. Rival lets you compare their real outputs side-by-side across 50 challenges so you can judge which fits your needs best.

How much does Mercury 2 cost compared to Nova Premier 1.0?

Mercury 2 costs $0.25/M input tokens and Nova Premier 1.0 costs $2.5/M input tokens. Mercury 2 is $2.25/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 and Nova Premier 1.0 on Rival?

This page shows a side-by-side comparison of Mercury 2 and Nova Premier 1.0 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

  • Mercury 253 outputs, specs and price
  • Nova Premier 1.051 outputs, specs and price
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Explore all of Rival

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  • Compare models
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  • Image generation
  • Best AI for...
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  • Challenges

Discover

  • SubjectiveBench
  • Default Index
  • Research
  • Research downloads
  • Rival Kits
  • Find your AI taste
  • UI Glow-Up
  • VoiceLock
  • Cost Cutter
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  • Benchmarks vs Vibes
  • Brief
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