Can SpaceX’s New Grok Pricing Strategy Help Win the AI Race?

SpaceX dominates global space launch markets, but make no mistake, most of the company’s $2 trillion valuation is tied to artificial intelligence. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Key Points

• SpaceX is considering an overhaul of the pricing structure for its Grok artificial intelligence products, according to a Bloomberg report.
• The company may simplify its pricing into four tiers ranging from $0 to $100 a month.
• AI companies are locked in a battle for early market share, trying to become to AI what Google became to search.

AI is everywhere, but it’s new, which can make pricing it a challenge.

SpaceX might be overhauling how it prices its Grok AI products, according to Bloomberg. SpaceX didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Grok can be used inside of X, formerly Twitter, or as a stand-alone app. There is a free option, but users can pay for better service. Inside X, Grok is tied to X subscription tiers (people can still pay for a blue verified check mark). Stand-alone Grok for individuals can cost $30 or $100 a month, depending on usage. Enterprises pay, perhaps, $20 or $30 per ‘seat’ a month. (A seat is essentially a person using the service at a company. It’s typical pricing for software-as-a-service.)

Anthropic, OpenAI, and Alphabet use a similar pricing model. Bloomberg reported that SpaceX might simplify pricing into four tiers ranging from $0 to $100 a month.

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The importance of getting pricing and AI distribution correct cannot be overstated. AI companies are locked in a battle for early market share, trying to become to AI what Google became to search.

Pricing, of course, is only part of the equation. The cost to generate useful AI chatbots and agents also matters, which is why the AI companies are endlessly iterating their AI models, looking for an edge.

Exactly how the AI industry will develop is hard to say. Chatbots came first, now agents are coming, and next are physical AI applications such as robo-taxis and robots. Many companies might succeed, but the industry is wary of a winner-take-most outcome, which is why investors should not expect AI spending to slow down anytime soon.

SpaceX stock was up 0.7% at $151.56 in premarket trading Thursday, while S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were up 0.4% and 0.3%, respectively.

Write to Al Root at allen.root@barrons.com.

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