Identity Update (March 23, 2026): Hunter Alpha has been confirmed as Xiaomi’s mimo-v2 model. This comparison remains valid —Hunter Alpha was the pre-announcement codename. See our updated comparison with mimo-v2 →
Free AI Models Showdown: Hunter Alpha vs GPT-4o Mini vs Claude vs Gemini
Setup
Too many “best free AI model” listicles, not enough real testing. So I ran my own comparison.
Contestants:
- Hunter Alpha (1M context; free during the preview, billed as MiMo-V2.5 since)
- GPT-4o Mini (free tier)
- Claude 3.5 Sonnet (free tier)
- Gemini 1.5 Flash (free)
Tests: Long document understanding, code generation, multi-turn conversation, creative writing.
Test 1: Long Document Understanding (50K tokens)
Task: Extract key figures from a financial report.
| Model | Accuracy | Speed |
|---|---|---|
| Hunter Alpha | ✅ Accurate | ~30s |
| GPT-4o Mini | ⚠️ Missed 2 items | ~8s |
| Claude 3.5 Sonnet | ✅ Accurate | ~15s |
| Gemini 1.5 Flash | ✅ Accurate | ~10s |
Winner: Hunter Alpha (accuracy over speed)
Test 2: Code Generation
Task: Write a Python script to read CSV and generate charts.
| Model | First Try | After Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Hunter Alpha | ⚠️ Had bugs | ✅ Works |
| GPT-4o Mini | ✅ Passed | - |
| Claude 3.5 Sonnet | ✅ Passed (cleanest) | - |
| Gemini 1.5 Flash | ⚠️ Needed version pin | ✅ Works |
Winner: Claude 3.5 Sonnet
Test 3: Multi-Turn Conversation (10+ turns)
Task: Discuss a technical solution, maintain context consistency.
| Model | Context Memory | Quality |
|---|---|---|
| Hunter Alpha | ✅ Remembered, some repetition | Good |
| GPT-4o Mini | ⚠️ Forgot after 7-8 turns | Okay |
| Claude 3.5 Sonnet | ✅ Best overall | Excellent |
| Gemini 1.5 Flash | ✅ Solid | Good |
Winner: Claude 3.5 Sonnet
Test 4: Creative Writing
Task: 800-word sci-fi story opening.
Subjective, but here’s my take:
- Hunter Alpha: Competent, reads a bit AI-generated
- GPT-4o Mini: Smooth, but formulaic
- Claude 3.5 Sonnet: Most “human” feel
- Gemini 1.5 Flash: Most imaginative
Winner: Claude 3.5 Sonnet
Overall Scores (out of 5)
| Model | Long Doc | Code | Conversation | Creative | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter Alpha | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3.75 |
| GPT-4o Mini | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3.75 |
| Claude 3.5 Sonnet | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5.0 |
| Gemini 1.5 Flash | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4.25 |
Wait, Claude Wins Everything?
Not quite. Remember:
- Claude’s free tier has limits
- Hunter Alpha was completely free only during its preview; it is billed as MiMo-V2.5 now
- For long docs specifically, Hunter Alpha matches Claude
When Each Model Wins
Hunter Alpha
- Processing massive documents
- Budget is $0
- Experimentation and learning
GPT-4o Mini
- Quick code tasks
- When speed matters
Claude 3.5 Sonnet
- Overall quality
- Sensitive topics
- When you need the best free tier offers
Gemini 1.5 Flash
- Balanced performance
- Google ecosystem users
My Actual Recommendation
Don’t pick one. Use all of them.
Each has strengths. Hunter Alpha for massive context. Claude for quality. GPT-4o Mini for speed. Gemini as a solid backup.
The real winner? Us. Free, high-quality AI everywhere.
Disagree with my scoring? Test them yourself and let me know what you find.