Fugu Max vs MiMo-V2.5

Sakana AI · Global  |  Xiaomi · China · Updated June 2026

Quick verdict

Pick Fugu Max for cost-efficient multi-agent orchestration — undercuts claude sonnet 5 and kimi k3 on output cost by a claimed 40-60% or 1m-token context window at $2/$6 per million tokens. Pick MiMo-V2.5 for native omnimodal — strong image and video understanding or very low cost (~half the inference of the pro tier). Choose MiMo-V2.5 if you need self-hosting or data privacy; Fugu Max if you want a managed API.

Fugu Max (Sakana AI) and MiMo-V2.5 (Xiaomi) are two of the models people most often weigh against each other in 2026. Fugu Max is sakana AI's cost-first multi-agent orchestration model — not a single trained model, but a routed pool of models behind one API, priced at $2/$6 per million tokens. MiMo-V2.5 is xiaomi's cheap omnimodal model — Pro-level agentic perception across image and video at a fraction of the cost. They diverge most on price and open vs. closed weights — each quantified below from the models' real specs.

Key differences at a glance

Side-by-side specs

SpecFugu MaxMiMo-V2.5
ProviderSakana AI (Global) Xiaomi (China)
ReleasedSeptember 10, 2026 April 22, 2026
Context window1M tokens (~1,500 pages) 1M (~1,500 pages)
Price (in/out)$2/$6 per 1M tokens $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens
Open weight?No — API only Yes — self-hostable
Modalitiestext text, image, audio, video, code
SWE-Bench VerifiedNot published Not published
MRCR v2 @ 1MNot published Not published

Who wins what

Cost-efficient multi-agent orchestration — undercuts Claude Sonnet 5 and Kimi K3 on output cost by a claimed 40-60%

Fugu Max

Sakana AI's cost-first multi-agent orchestration model — not a single trained model, but a routed pool of models behind one API, priced at $2/$6 per million tokens — and it is the newer of the two.

1M-token context window at $2/$6 per million tokens

Fugu Max

Fugu Max lists 1M-token context window at $2/$6 per million tokens among its strengths; MiMo-V2.5 does not.

OpenAI-compatible API — drop-in replacement for single-model integrations

Fugu Max

Fugu Max lists openAI-compatible API — drop-in replacement for single-model integrations among its strengths; MiMo-V2.5 does not.

Native omnimodal — strong image and video understanding

MiMo-V2.5

Xiaomi's cheap omnimodal model — Pro-level agentic perception across image and video at a fraction of the cost — and it runs cheaper at $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens.

Very low cost (~half the inference of the Pro tier)

MiMo-V2.5

At $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens it undercuts Fugu Max ($2/$6 per 1M tokens), and that gap compounds at volume.

Agent-framework integration

MiMo-V2.5

Fugu Max is comparatively weak here — not a single trained model — Sakana describes Fugu as "a Multi-Agent System, Delivered as One Model" that routes tasks across a pool of other models, so raw benchmark comparisons to monolithic models can be misleading

Lowest cost at scale

MiMo-V2.5

At $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens, it is the cheaper of the two — the gap dominates the bill on high-volume workloads.

Which should you pick?

A cost-sensitive startup shipping high volume

MiMo-V2.5

At $0.14/$0.28 per 1M tokens it undercuts Fugu Max, and on millions of tokens that margin decides the monthly bill.

A team with data-privacy or self-hosting needs

MiMo-V2.5

Open weights let you run it on your own hardware; Fugu Max is API-only.

Anyone whose priority is cost-efficient multi-agent orchestration — undercuts claude sonnet 5 and kimi k3 on output cost by a claimed 40-60%

Fugu Max

It is specifically built for that.

Anyone whose priority is native omnimodal — strong image and video understanding

MiMo-V2.5

That is its strongest area.

Fugu Max: where it fits

Sakana AI's cost-first multi-agent orchestration model — not a single trained model, but a routed pool of models behind one API, priced at $2/$6 per million tokens. Released September 10, 2026 by Sakana AI, it is built for cost-efficient multi-agent orchestration — undercuts Claude Sonnet 5 and Kimi K3 on output cost by a claimed 40-60%, 1M-token context window at $2/$6 per million tokens, and openAI-compatible API — drop-in replacement for single-model integrations.

Its trade-offs are real: not a single trained model — Sakana describes Fugu as "a Multi-Agent System, Delivered as One Model" that routes tasks across a pool of other models, so raw benchmark comparisons to monolithic models can be misleading, the cheaper sibling to Fugu Ultra v2 — lower ceiling on the hardest reasoning tasks, and a young, first-generation product from Sakana AI's orchestration approach, unproven at scale versus established frontier labs. At $2 in / $6 out per million tokens, it sits in the mid price band.

MiMo-V2.5: where it fits

Xiaomi's cheap omnimodal model — Pro-level agentic perception across image and video at a fraction of the cost. Released April 22, 2026 by Xiaomi, it is built for native omnimodal — strong image and video understanding, very low cost (~half the inference of the Pro tier), agent-framework integration, and 1M context for full documents in one pass.

Its trade-offs: not the deepest reasoning tier (see V2.5-Pro), and limited Western tooling and support. At $0.14 in / $0.28 out per million tokens, it sits in the budget price band.

The bottom line for this matchup

The defining split here is open vs. closed. MiMo-V2.5 gives you weights you control — self-host it, fine-tune it, keep data in-house, pay only for hardware. Fugu Max gives you a managed, always-updated API with no infrastructure to run. Teams with GPUs, privacy requirements, or huge volume often favour the open model; teams that want zero ops and the latest capabilities favour the closed one. Capability is close enough that this operational question, not the benchmark, usually decides it.

Want both Fugu Max and MiMo-V2.5 without two subscriptions? LumiChats gives you these plus 40+ models under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day) — draft with one, cross-check with the other.

See pricing

Frequently asked questions

Is Fugu Max or MiMo-V2.5 better for coding?

Public SWE-Bench figures are not available for either model, so the honest test is your own repository — run an identical real bug through both. By design, Fugu Max leans toward cost-efficient multi-agent orchestration — undercuts claude sonnet 5 and kimi k3 on output cost by a claimed 40-60% while MiMo-V2.5 leans toward native omnimodal — strong image and video understanding, and that positioning usually predicts which feels better on your codebase.

Which is cheaper, Fugu Max or MiMo-V2.5?

MiMo-V2.5 is open-weight, so self-hosting means no per-token fee (you pay for hardware instead), while Fugu Max is API-metered at $2/$6 per 1M tokens. For most teams without GPUs, the API model is cheaper to start; at very high volume, self-hosting can win.

Which has the bigger context window?

Both advertise 1M tokens (~1,500 pages). Remember advertised ≠ usable: recall typically degrades before the ceiling.

Can I use both Fugu Max and MiMo-V2.5 together?

Yes — a multi-model platform like LumiChats gives you Fugu Max, MiMo-V2.5 and 40+ others under one ₹69/day pass (about $1/day), so you can draft with one and cross-check with the other instead of buying two subscriptions.

Which is newer, Fugu Max or MiMo-V2.5?

Fugu Max — released September 10, 2026, about 5 months after MiMo-V2.5.

Related comparisons

Specifications and benchmarks reflect publicly reported figures as of June 2026 and may change as providers release updates. Always verify on your own workload.