Groq
Groq is an inference cloud built around its own LPU chips, offering fast, OpenAI-compatible API access to open AI models for developers and enterprises.
About this tool
Groq is a company focused on AI inference, the step of running a trained model to answer requests. It designed its own chip, the LPU, built specifically for fast inference, and now pairs it with an LPX system that works alongside NVIDIA’s next-generation GPUs. It presents itself as a cloud provider dedicated to running models at speed and scale.
Developers reach Groq through GroqCloud, an API compatible with OpenAI’s format, which makes it straightforward to switch existing code. The service hosts a selection of open models and is often chosen when response latency matters, such as voice assistants, real-time agents or interactive applications. Groq states that millions of developers use the platform.
What you can do
LPU-based inference
Groq’s own processor architecture is designed to serve model outputs quickly, which can reduce latency for interactive applications.
OpenAI-compatible API
GroqCloud follows the OpenAI request format, so many existing applications can switch by changing the endpoint and key.
Open model hosting
The platform serves a range of open models for text and other tasks without developers managing hardware.
Enterprise capacity
Groq is building large data-centre capacity and offers an integrated platform for infrastructure, inference and control.
Who is it for?
- A voice assistant team reduces response delays in spoken conversations.
- A developer tests an agent loop that needs many quick model calls.
- A company serves an open model to customers without operating GPUs.
Before you choose
The choice of models is limited to those Groq hosts; check that the model you need is available and how its quality compares.
Pricing and rate limits differ by model and plan; review them in the GroqCloud console before production use.
Frequently asked questions
What is an LPU?
The LPU is Groq’s own processor design for AI inference, intended to generate model outputs quickly and efficiently.
Can I use Groq with OpenAI client libraries?
Yes, Groq’s documentation describes its API as OpenAI-compatible, so many existing tools can switch with little change.
Does Groq train models?
Groq focuses on running models rather than training them, serving open models through its inference cloud.
Check the official website for current features, pricing, and terms.
Similar tools
Together AI
CodingTogether AI is a cloud platform for running, fine-tuning and serving open-source AI models, from serverless APIs to dedicated endpoints and GPU clusters.
Jan
CodingJan is a free, open-source desktop app for chatting with AI models that run offline on your computer, with optional connections to cloud models.
Hugging Face
CodingHugging Face is the main hub for open AI models, datasets and demo apps, with hosting, inference and collaboration tools for teams and enterprises.
Fireworks AI
CodingFireworks AI is an inference and training platform for open models, offering fast serverless APIs, fine-tuning and dedicated GPU deployments.
Modal
CodingModal is a serverless cloud for AI workloads: run inference, batch jobs, fine-tuning, sandboxes and GPU notebooks from Python code, billed per second.
OpenAI API
CodingThe OpenAI API gives developers programmatic access to OpenAI’s GPT models and tools such as the Agents SDK for building assistants, agents and AI features.