Axios: Musk and Zuck’s comeback

Musk and Zuck’s AI comeback
 
Illustration of a torn hundred dollar bill revealing binary code beneath
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
 
Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have muscled their way back into AI’s elite ranks, closing the gap on a new generation of Silicon Valley startups, Axios’ Madison Mills and Zachary Basu write.

Why it matters: Recent gains by tech giants SpaceX and Meta — long stuck in AI’s second tier — are putting pressure on a hierarchy dominated by OpenAI and Anthropic.

Both companies released models this week with performance and pricing that would’ve been hard to imagine from either lab a year ago.

SpaceX’s Grok 4.6 scored essentially even with OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol Max and just behind Anthropic’s Fable 5 Max on the closely watched Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index.

Promising “something special,” Musk said Grok 4.7 should arrive in three to four weeks and predicted it will “exceed all current models” after additional training on a massive trove of SpaceX data.

Meta is trying to squeeze the frontier from below. Its new models deliver competitive performance at dramatically lower cost — including Muse Glimmer, an open-weight system small enough to run locally on a laptop.

🔬 Zoom in: As OpenAI and Anthropic pulled ahead, Musk and Zuckerberg answered with the full force of their empires — spending billions on talent, infrastructure and acquisitions.

Zuckerberg overhauled Meta’s AI effort after the disappointing launch of Llama 4, then invested $14.3 billion in Scale AI and brought aboard its CEO, 

Alexandr Wang, to lead the push.

Musk went even further, folding xAI into SpaceX and agreeing to acquire Cursor for $60 billion — bringing massive computing power, proprietary SpaceX data and a fast-growing AI coding platform under one roof.

Between the lines: The AI race is starting to reward more than raw intelligence, as price becomes a decisive advantage for many users.

🥊 Reality check: Anthropic and OpenAI still hold pole position — with even more capable models waiting in the wings, including systems deemed too sensitive for public release.Share this story.
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About michelleclarke2015

Life event that changes all: Horse riding accident in Zimbabwe in 1993, a fractured skull et al including bipolar anxiety, chronic fatigue …. co-morbidities (Nietzche 'He who has the reason why can deal with any how' details my health history from 1993 to date). 17th 2017 August operation for breast cancer (no indications just an appointment came from BreastCheck through the Post). Trinity College Dublin Business Economics and Social Studies (but no degree) 1997-2003; UCD 1997/1998 night classes) essays, projects, writings. Trinity Horizon Programme 1997/98 (Centre for Women Studies Trinity College Dublin/St. Patrick's Foundation (Professor McKeon) EU Horizon funded: research study of 15 women (I was one of this group and it became the cornerstone of my journey to now 2017) over 9 mth period diagnosed with depression and their reintegration into society, with special emphasis on work, arts, further education; Notes from time at Trinity Horizon Project 1997/98; Articles written for Irishhealth.com 2003/2004; St Patricks Foundation monthly lecture notes for a specific period in time; Selection of Poetry including poems written by people I know; Quotations 1998-2017; other writings mainly with theme of social justice under the heading Citizen Journalism Ireland. Letters written to friends about life in Zimbabwe; Family history including Michael Comyn KC, my grandfather, my grandmother's family, the O'Donnellan ffrench Blake-Forsters; Moral wrong: An acrimonious divorce but the real injustice was the Catholic Church granting an annulment – you can read it and make your own judgment, I have mine. Topics I have written about include annual Brain Awareness week, Mashonaland Irish Associataion in Zimbabwe, Suicide (a life sentence to those left behind); Nostalgia: Tara Hill, Co. Meath.
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