# Particle.AI > An early startup serving cheap Flash-class open models with 1M context. Canonical: https://www.subconscious.dev/providers/particle-ai · By The Subconscious Team · Updated September 30, 2026 - Example models: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, GLM 5.3 Flash - Website: https://particle.ai ## Overview Particle AI is an early San Francisco infrastructure startup with a mission to make intelligence as cheap and abundant as electricity. The team works on post-training, inference optimization and distributed systems, all aimed at pushing down cost per unit of intelligence. It is still hiring its founding team and works fully in person. Public detail about funding and founders is thin as of this writing. The clearest window into the product is Vercel AI Gateway, where Particle serves a small set of fast, cheap open models with 1M token context. Listings include DeepSeek V4.1 Flash at $0.25 in and $1 out with about 157 tokens per second, GLM 5.3 Flash at $0.10 in and $0.40 out, and DeepSeek V4 Flash 0731 at $0.14 in and $0.28 out. All three offer cache reads at $0.03 per million, and Particle has picked up new Flash-class models within days of release. It is a different company from Particle, the podcast intelligence API. ## Upsides - Low prices and full 1M context on efficient Flash-class open models. - Available through Vercel AI Gateway, so teams can try it with no new contract. ## Core use cases - Cheap high-volume calls on DeepSeek and GLM Flash models. - A fallback or price-optimized route inside a multi-provider gateway. ## Downsides - Very early company with a tiny catalog and little public track record. - Latency on some listings, like 3.5 seconds on DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, trails faster hosts. ## At a glance | Attribute | Value | |---|---| | Model access | Open weights | | Flagship models | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, GLM 5.3 Flash | | Speed | ~157 tok/s on DeepSeek V4.1 Flash | | Price | $0.10 in, $0.40 out (GLM 5.3 Flash) | | Customization | - | | Deployment | Via Vercel AI Gateway | | Long context | 1M | ## FAQ ### What is Particle.AI? Particle AI is an early San Francisco infrastructure startup with a mission to make intelligence as cheap and abundant as electricity. The team works on post-training, inference optimization and distributed systems, all aimed at pushing down cost per unit of intelligence. It is still hiring its founding team and works fully in person. Public detail about funding and founders is thin as of this writing. ### What is Particle.AI best for? Cheap high-volume calls on DeepSeek and GLM Flash models; A fallback or price-optimized route inside a multi-provider gateway. ### How much does Particle.AI cost? Particle.AI pricing at a glance: $0.10 in, $0.40 out (GLM 5.3 Flash). Rates change often, so check Particle.AI's pricing page before committing. ### How much context does Particle.AI support? Particle.AI's long-context support: 1M. ### What are the downsides of Particle.AI? Very early company with a tiny catalog and little public track record; Latency on some listings, like 3.5 seconds on DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, trails faster hosts. ### What are the best alternatives to Particle.AI? Common alternatives include Subconscious, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Vertex AI, Amazon Bedrock. Each has a head-to-head comparison with Particle.AI on this site. ## Comparisons - [Subconscious vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/subconscious-vs-particle-ai.md) - [OpenAI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/openai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Anthropic vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/anthropic-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Google Vertex AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/google-vertex-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Amazon Bedrock vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/aws-bedrock-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Together AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/together-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Fireworks AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/fireworks-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Baseten vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/baseten-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Groq vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/groq-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Cerebras vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/cerebras-vs-particle-ai.md) - [DeepInfra vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepinfra-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Modal vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/modal-vs-particle-ai.md) - [xAI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/xai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [DeepSeek vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/deepseek-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Moonshot AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/moonshot-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Z.ai vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/z-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Alibaba Cloud vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/alibaba-cloud-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Meta vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/meta-vs-particle-ai.md) - [SambaNova vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/sambanova-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Nebius vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/nebius-vs-particle-ai.md) - [fal vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/fal-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Novita AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/novita-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Parasail vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/parasail-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Inference.net vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/inference-net-vs-particle-ai.md) - [GMI Cloud vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/gmi-cloud-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Sail Research vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/sail-research-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Morph vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/morph-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Relace vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/relace-vs-particle-ai.md) - [TypeSafe AI vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/typesafe-ai-vs-particle-ai.md) - [StepFun vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/stepfun-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Runware vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/runware-vs-particle-ai.md) - [StreamLake vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/streamlake-vs-particle-ai.md) - [Wafer vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/wafer-vs-particle-ai.md) - [RunInfra vs Particle.AI](https://www.subconscious.dev/compare/runinfra-vs-particle-ai.md) ## Sources - [Particle AI](https://particle.ai/) - [Particle on Vercel AI Gateway](https://vercel.com/ai-gateway/models/providers/particle) Pricing and model lineups change often; figures are a snapshot.