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Fireworks AI vs Modal
Not direct substitutes. Fireworks sells per-token access to 400+ open models; Modal sells per-second GPUs for code and models you bring yourself.
By The Subconscious Team · Updated
Fireworks AI vs Modal: key differences
Fireworks is a model host. Modal is a compute platform. On Fireworks a developer picks one of 400+ models, calls an OpenAI-compatible endpoint and pays per token. On Modal a developer decorates a Python function with the GPU it needs, and Modal builds, schedules and autoscales the container, billing per second with no model catalog at all. That makes Modal the better home for work Fireworks does not host: custom non-LLM models, OCR, reranking, transcription, batch media jobs and agent sandboxes. Fireworks is the better home for serving popular open LLMs fast, with 167 to 174 tokens per second on DeepSeek V4 Pro in third-party tests.
Fine-tuning shows the difference in approach. Modal runs any training code you write. Fireworks manages SFT, DPO and RL for you, including a Training API with matched numerics between training and inference, and serves tuned models at base price. On cost, Modal's H100 lists at $3.95 an hour, but non-preemptible US production runs near $14.81, and keeping containers warm turns a serverless bill into an always-on one. Fireworks dedicated H100s cost $8 an hour. Many teams use both: Fireworks for LLM calls, Modal for the custom GPU jobs around them.
What Fireworks AI and Modal do
Fireworks AI
Fireworks AI was founded in 2022 by former Meta PyTorch engineers led by CEO Lin Qiao, and it sells speed on open models. Its custom serving stack has posted 167 to 174 tokens per second on DeepSeek V4 Pro in third-party measurements, several times what most GPU peers hit on the same model. The catalog holds 400+ models across text, vision, audio and embeddings, served through an OpenAI-compatible API. In July 2026 it raised a $1.505B Series D at a $17.5B valuation, with a reported $1B+ run rate and 40T+ tokens a day.
Example models: DeepSeek V4 Pro, Kimi K3
Full Fireworks AI profileModal
Modal is serverless compute with GPUs attached. A developer decorates a Python function with the hardware it needs, such as gpu="H100", and Modal builds the container, schedules it, autoscales it and scales it back to zero. Billing runs per second with no minimum increment, from $0.59 an hour for a T4 to $3.95 for an H100 at list. Containers can hold up to 8 GPUs across T4 through B300.
Example models: none hosted by default; teams deploy their own, such as open LLMs on vLLM or Whisper
Full Modal profileShould you choose Fireworks AI or Modal?
Fireworks AI
Choose Fireworks AI for
- Serving popular open LLMs without writing serving code
- Managed RL and SFT fine-tuning
- Steady per-token LLM traffic
Modal
Choose Modal for
- Custom models like OCR, embeddings or transcription
- Bursty GPU jobs that scale to zero
- Running your own training or batch code in Python
Fireworks AI vs Modal at a glance
| Attribute | Fireworks AI | Modal |
|---|---|---|
| Model access | Open weights | Bring your own weights |
| Flagship models | DeepSeek V4 Pro, Kimi K3 | None hosted |
| Speed | 167–174 tok/s on DeepSeek V4 Pro | ~1s container boot |
| Price | Fine-tunes served at base price | Per second; H100 $3.95/hr list |
| Customization | SFT, DPO, RFT; Training API | Run any training code |
| Deployment | Serverless, dedicated GPUs | Serverless GPU containers |
| Long context | Full 1M on DeepSeek V4 Pro | Depends on the model you deploy |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Fireworks AI and Modal?
Not direct substitutes. Fireworks sells per-token access to 400+ open models; Modal sells per-second GPUs for code and models you bring yourself.
When should I choose Fireworks AI over Modal?
Serving popular open LLMs without writing serving code; Managed RL and SFT fine-tuning; Steady per-token LLM traffic.
When should I choose Modal over Fireworks AI?
Custom models like OCR, embeddings or transcription; Bursty GPU jobs that scale to zero; Running your own training or batch code in Python.
Is Fireworks AI or Modal cheaper?
Fireworks AI: Fine-tunes served at base price. Modal: Per second; H100 $3.95/hr list. The cheaper choice depends on the model and workload.
Which has more context, Fireworks AI or Modal?
Fireworks AI: Full 1M on DeepSeek V4 Pro. Modal: Depends on the model you deploy.
Related comparisons
Running long-horizon agents?
If your agents run past 200K tokens, compare both against Subconscious. Our inference stack treats a long-horizon trace as the primary workload, so speed, cost, and accuracy hold up deep into the trace.