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answer: direct
beat: ai-technology
source: 1 article · updated: July 8, 2026
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What did Elon Musk actually say about Grok 4.5 versus Opus?

Musk told TechCrunch Grok 4.5 was 'an Opus-class model, but faster, more token-efficient and lower cost,' then added it was 'roughly comparable to Opus 4.7, but much faster' — comparing his new model to Claude Opus 4.7 rather than the newer Opus 4.8 that actually outranks Grok 4.5 on the Artificial Analysis Index.

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Grok 4.5 Ships, xAI Calls It Opus-Class at a Third of the Price

xAI's Grok 4.5 prices coding at $2/$6 per million tokens, undercutting the $5/$25 Musk quoted for Opus 4.7 — but the AA Index ranks it behind Opus 4.8.

Crashtech Editorial July 8, 2026 How AI Actually Works

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