OpenAI and Anthropic Slash AI Prices as Chinese Rivals Force a Mid-Tier Model Price War
Summary
OpenAI and Anthropic are slashing mid-tier AI model prices by up to 80% as Chinese rivals DeepSeek and Moonshot force a fierce price war, with major US companies like DoorDash and Airbnb already switching to cheaper Chinese-made models to cut costs.
Key Points
- OpenAI and Anthropic are slashing prices on mid-tier AI models, with OpenAI cutting GPT-5.6 Luna costs by 80% and Anthropic launching Claude Opus 5 at half the price of its flagship Fable 5 model.
- Chinese AI rivals like DeepSeek and Moonshot are gaining ground by offering capable open-source models at lower costs, prompting major US companies like DoorDash and Airbnb to adopt Chinese-made models to reduce their AI bills.
- The price war is intensifying as corporate customers face rising costs from usage-based billing shifts, pushing US labs to defend their mid-tier offerings while trying to maintain premium pricing on their most advanced models ahead of planned trillion-dollar IPOs.