DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max) vs Inkling 2 Small
Which is better for the money: DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max) by DeepSeek or Inkling 2 Small by Thinking Machines? Intelligence, total benchmark cost, and end-to-end time from Artificial Analysis & other sources, snapshot 2026-11-06.
Clear winner
Verdict
Pick DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max)
Inkling 2 Small vs DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max): 6.1% less intelligence, 52.1% more cost to run the AA benchmark, and 25.6% slower end-to-end.
| Metric | DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max) | Inkling 2 Small | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intelligence (higher is better) | 32.6 | 30.6 | −6.1% Inkling 2 Small is 6.1% less intelligent |
| Total AA cost (lower is better) | $520.63 | $791.81 | +52.1% Inkling 2 Small is 52.1% more expensive |
| End-to-end time (lower is better) | 16.65s | 20.92s | +25.6% Inkling 2 Small is 25.6% slower |
| Price per 1M tokens (in / out) | $0.30 / $1.20 | $0.30 / $1.00 | |
| Input modalities | Text, Image | Text, Image |
Today's Pareto frontier
Against the frontier
- DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max) is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Medium) scores 46.30 for $389.
- Inkling 2 Small is off the frontier: at the same or lower cost, GPT-6.1 Sol (Xhigh) scores 52.50 for $718.
DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017 (Max)Inkling 2 SmallToday's Pareto frontierOpen-weights frontierEvery other model
Matchup
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Accept: text/markdown or ?format=md returns this page as Markdown. JSON: /api/v1/compare/deepseek-v4-1-flash-1017/inkling-2-small · Markdown: /api/v1/compare/deepseek-v4-1-flash-1017/inkling-2-small?format=md · llms.txt · agent skill