Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, has announced that its newest artificial intelligence model, Grok 4, is now available for free to all users worldwide. This means that anyone with an xAI account can try the model without paying, but usage is limited to a certain number of queries, and some premium features remain locked. Also, free-tier users now have two ways to access the model – one is ‘Auto Mode’ and the other is ‘Expert Mode’.
In Auto Mode, the system decides when to use Grok 4 or a lighter, faster version, depending on the complexity of the request. In Expert Mode, all queries go directly through Grok 4, giving users consistent access to its most advanced publicly available capabilities. However, the Grok 4 Heavy variant (the highest-performance version) is still reserved for paying subscribers under the SuperGrok Heavy plan (which costs $300 per month).
Importantly, the free access is not unlimited. Users face query caps, with some reports indicating a limit of around five questions every 12 hours, while others suggest the current limits are more generous but temporary. xAI is expected to monitor demand and may adjust restrictions over time.
“For a limited time, we are rolling out generous usage limits so you can explore Grok 4’s full potential,” the company said.
Anyone who wants to use Grok 4 must be signed in to their xAI account. If they are not logged in, the system will automatically switch them to Grok 3, which can respond quickly but clearly is less powerful and capable than Grok 4.
At the same time, some tools also remain restricted despite the free access. For example, ‘Grok Imagine‘ (the image and video generation feature) has been available without charge to US users since last month, but is still blocked in other countries. Even where it is available, the feature comes with usage rules and safeguards following concerns over potential misuse of AI-generated content.
The timing of the announcement comes shortly after xAI’s prominent rival and AI trendsetter, OpenAI, made its own latest model, GPT-5, available to all registered users, signaling a competitive push in the AI industry to attract and retain users. And now the free rollout from xAI could serve as a trial period to give people a taste of Grok 4’s abilities, with the goal of encouraging them to upgrade to paid tiers for faster performance, higher limits, and access to the Heavy variant.
There are also reports suggesting that the company might cover the cost of offering Grok 4 for free by adding ads to the service, as running advanced AI models is expensive. During a recent livestream aimed at advertisers, Elon Musk reportedly revealed that X will soon begin displaying advertisements within the answers generated by xAI’s AI chatbot, Grok. The ads will appear directly in Grok’s responses, blending naturally into conversations. Musk said they would be placed where sponsored content fits logically. He explained that the goal is to help cover the high operational costs of running Grok, particularly the expense of GPUs (graphics processing units) needed to power the AI system.
The latest move becomes even more significant given Grok’s controversial track record. From backlash over its ‘spicy mode’ in the Grok Imagine tool to criticism of explicit AI companion interactions and outrage over antisemitic outputs, the chatbot has faced repeated public scrutiny.
