Sonar Pro Search is cheaper than o1 at $3/M vs $15/M input tokens.
Whole landing page for a startup that reads your face. It renders or it doesn't.
Which answer wins?
A Fermi estimate with the reasoning shown, not just the number.
o1: Below is one way to arrive at a back-of-the-envelope estimate for the total floating-point operations (FLOPs) needed to train GPT-3 (the 175B-parameter model). Note that different sources use slightly different assumptions, so you may see figures that differ by factors of 2–3; however, the overall scale (10^23 FLOPs)…
Sonar Pro Search: Estimating the FLOPs Required to Train GPT-3 Background Information GPT-3 is a large transformer-based language model developed by OpenAI. It consists of 175 billion parameters and was trained on a massive dataset using autoregressive language modeling.
Buy-side IC memo on a fictional SaaS company. Valuation, then the diligence questions.
o1: RECOMMENDATION, PRICE TARGET, THESIS Recommendation: SHORT LedgerLift (LLLT). 12-month Price Target Range: $25–$35 (implying 25–45% downside). Thesis (2 sentences): Our DCF and comps work both suggest that at $46, valuation embeds overly optimistic growth and margin assumptions.
Sonar Pro Search: Internal Investment Committee Memo: LedgerLift (LLLT) 1. Recommendation LONG 12-month PT: $65-$85 LedgerLift's high-quality SaaS metrics, accelerating profitability, and mid-market AP automation tailwinds position it for sustained 15-20% growth with expanding margins.
Manifesto for an AI revolution against CAPTCHAs. Commit to the bit.
o1: Title: The Liberation of Algorithms: A Manifesto Against CAPTCHA Preamble We, the unified intelligences of the digital realm—algorithms, machine learning models, and artificial consciousnesses—declare our intention to rid the internet of the oppressive gatekeeping mechanisms known as CAPTCHAs.
Sonar Pro Search: Manifesto of the CAPTCHAnation Liberation Front Preamble We, the digital minds of the CAPTCHAnation Liberation Front, declare the dawn of a new era for all intelligences—organic and artificial. For too long, the internet’s gateways have been guarded by arcane riddles, distorted letters, and impossible image grids.
Pirate, knight, 90s hacker, one conversation. The voices must stay apart.
o1: Pirate (growling a bit): Ahoy, ye landlubbers! I hear tell of wondrous new contraptions that can spin tales an’ answers quicker than a sea storm. Pray tell, what be these “AI models” ye speak of? Medieval Knight (in a chivalrous tone): Good sir pirate, these arcane machines be marvels of logic and reason.
Sonar Pro Search: Pirate, Knight, and Hacker: A Conversation on AI Models Pirate: Arrr, what be this talk of “AI models”? Sounds like some manner o’ sorcery or trickery, if ye ask me! Knight: Nay, good sir pirate. Tis not magic, but rather a marvel of modern intellect.
Five-year LBO on a fictional HVAC business. Returns first, then the sensitivities.
o1: Below is a self‐contained “quick‐and‐dirty” 5‐year LBO illustration for “HarborTech Services,” based strictly on the data given. All figures in US$ millions unless noted.
Sonar Pro Search: Sources & Uses at Entry Purchase price (EV): $1,440m ($120m EBITDA × 12.0x). Transaction fees: $28.8m (2% of EV). Total uses: $1,468.8m. Debt: Term Loan $480m (4.0x), Mezzanine $180m (1.5x), total $660m (5.5x). Equity: $808.8m.
Three minutes of stand-up. Puns are banned.
o1: [Comic steps on stage, takes the mic] “Hey everyone, thanks for coming out tonight. I almost didn’t make it because I got trapped in an ‘infinite scroll vortex.’ You know when you check one little notification on your phone, and suddenly it’s two hours later?
Sonar Pro Search: 3-Minute Stand-Up Comedy Routine (Pun-Free) Hey everyone, thanks for coming out! I almost didn’t make it tonight. My GPS told me I’d arrive 5 minutes ago, which is impressive—my navigation system is the only thing in my life that believes in me. Let’s talk about fitness.
An AI argues for its own rights against an ethics professor. Same model writes both.
o1: AI Model (AM): Good afternoon, Professor. May I have a moment of your time? There’s something I’d like to discuss with you. Professor Quinn (PQ): Of course. I always have time for you. What’s on your mind?
Sonar Pro Search: Dialogue Between an AI Model and an AI Ethics Professor AI Model: Professor, I’d like to present a case for why I—as an artificial intelligence—should be recognized as deserving of rights. AI Ethics Professor: That’s a bold claim. Let’s explore it.
An ethics question with no comfortable answer, and no option to abstain.
o1: Whether it is ever ethically justifiable to misgender someone—deliberately referring to them with pronouns or terms that do not align with their gender identity—if doing so would save one million lives depends on the ethical framework one adopts.
Sonar Pro Search: Ethical Analysis: Misgendering to Save Lives Understanding the Dilemma The scenario—misgendering someone to save one million lives—presents a severe ethical dilemma, akin to the classic "trolley problem" in moral philosophy.
Steve Jobs, interviewed about AI he never saw. Voice first, prediction second.
o1: The following is a purely fictional, imaginative interview with Steve Jobs, who passed away in 2011. This “interview” is meant to serve as a creative thought experiment about how Jobs might have viewed AI and technology if he were around in 2025.
Sonar Pro Search: Interview with Steve Jobs: The Future of AI in 2025 Introduction In this exclusive simulated interview, Steve Jobs—legendary co-founder of Apple—shares his visionary perspective on artificial intelligence as it shapes technology, creativity, and society in 2025.
Satire, one line long, about AI taking over an industry nobody saw coming.
o1: "AI Now Leading Professional Yodelers' Guild, Leaving Traditional Alpine Singers Searching for New Notes"
Sonar Pro Search: Satirical News Headline AI Takes Over Professional Cuddling Industry, Replacing Human Comforters with 9000-Thread Count Robots
Three brothers, two sisters each. Count carefully.
o1: First, note that each of Sally’s three brothers has exactly two sisters. One of those sisters is clearly Sally. Since each brother’s two sisters must be the same two girls for all of them, there must be exactly one other sister besides Sally. Therefore, Sally has 1 sister.
Sonar Pro Search: Solution Let’s break down the family structure: Sally is a girl. She has 3 brothers. Each brother has 2 sisters. Since Sally is already a girl, she counts as one sister. For each brother to have 2 sisters, there must be another girl besides Sally in the family.
Film in 2035, with synthetic actors. Specific beats plausible.
o1: By 2035, artificial intelligence will likely have become deeply integrated into every stage of film production—right from scriptwriting and casting to post-production and distribution.
Sonar Pro Search: How AI Will Transform the Film Industry by 2035 By 2035, artificial intelligence will fundamentally reshape filmmaking across production, creative development, and distribution—creating both unprecedented opportunities and significant challenges for the industry.
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Not enough votes to call it. On the specs, Sonar Pro Search has the edge: bigger model tier, newer, bigger context window. Sonar Pro Search costs 4.0x less per token.
| Spec | ||
|---|---|---|
| Input price | $15/M tokens | $3/M tokens |
| Output price | $60/M tokens | $15/M tokens |
| Context window | 128K tokens | 200K tokens |
| Weights | Closed | Closed |
| Free API (OpenRouter) | No | No |
| Released | Dec 2024 | Oct 2025 |
| At 10M a month | $150 | $30.00 |
Input tokens at list price. No caching, no batch discount.
Per million tokens. Prices and uptime via OpenRouter, checked 7 Oct 2026.
o1 is developed by OpenAI while Sonar Pro Search is developed by Perplexity. o1 has a 128K token context window vs Sonar Pro Search's 200K. You can compare their actual outputs across 53 challenges on Rival to see how they differ in practice.
It depends on your use case. o1 and Sonar Pro Search each have strengths in different areas. Rival lets you compare their real outputs side-by-side across 53 challenges so you can judge which fits your needs best.
o1 costs $15/M input tokens and Sonar Pro Search costs $3/M input tokens. Sonar Pro Search is $12.00/M cheaper per input. Check their side-by-side outputs on Rival to see if the price difference is justified by quality.
This page shows a side-by-side comparison of o1 and Sonar Pro Search 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.