X's Grok AI set to open availability to free users

When X launched Grok in November 2023, many believed it would be the next ChatGPT killer, ready to challenge the reigning chatbot’s popularity. But, according to Social Media Today, Grok is currently only available to about 1.3 million people paying to use the app which is about 0.26% of X's user base and nowhere near ChatGPT's reported 200 million weekly users.

So, to boost those numbers, X has reportedly released a free version of Grok to everyone with several users posting about being able to use a free version of Grok already. Now, users won't need to pay for a premium X account to access some of xAI's capabilities.

As expected though, this free version comes with limits. Users are reportedly allowed 10 queries per two hours with the Grok-2 model, 20 queries per two hours with the Grok-2 mini model, and three image analysis questions per day. And, to access this, your account must be at least seven days old and have a linked phone number.

For now, it's still unconfirmed just how many regions this is available to as X has not made any announcement about it, but, the feature is expected to roll out globally soon.

While X offers bits and pieces of its AI to its users, other social media companies, like Meta and Snapchat both offer access to almost all their AI services for free, so this might not be the biggest attraction to the app. Still, it’s a step in a more open direction for X.

As for the premium options, if you’re not willing to pay at least $8 per month or $84 per year for X Premium—the cheapest tier that gives you full access to Grok—you can at least get a taste of the service for free.