China’s MiniMax Releases Cheap AI Model ‘Designed for Real-World Productivity’
Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company MiniMax has launched an updated large language model, M2.5, focused on practical applications, amid a surge of activity in the nation’s AI sector. The release comes as investor interest in smaller Chinese AI firms gains momentum, with global investors seeking opportunities beyond established tech giants.
According to a company statement released on Friday, February 13, 2026, M2.5 is its most powerful model to date, achieving performance comparable to leading models from American companies like Anthropic and OpenAI in areas such as coding and search. This development underscores China’s rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and its growing competitiveness in the global market.
MiniMax shares in Hong Kong closed 15.7 percent higher on Friday, February 13, 2026, at HK$680 following the announcement. The positive market reaction reflects investor confidence in the company’s progress and the potential of its new model.
One key advantage of M2.5 is its cost-efficiency, maintaining a model size of 230 billion parameters – the same as previous M2 iterations. “M2.5 is the first frontier model where users do not need to worry about cost, delivering on the promise of intelligence too cheap to meter,” the company said. MiniMax estimates that the model can be used continuously for one hour at a rate of 100 tokens per second for just US$1. Tokens represent modest units of data processed by the model.
The launch of M2.5 follows similar releases from other Chinese AI companies, signaling a broader trend of innovation within the industry. Ke Yan of DZT Research noted the model performs “very close” to Anthropic’s flagship model on benchmarks such as SWE, according to a post on X.
This move by MiniMax highlights the increasing competition in the AI landscape and the potential for more affordable and accessible AI solutions. The company’s focus on “intelligence too cheap to meter” could be a significant differentiator in the market, attracting users who prioritize cost-effectiveness.
