AI News by Smol AI vs The Rundown AI in 2026
AI News by Smol AI, The Rundown AI and Model Odds compared on what each sends you, what each costs and what to check before choosing one.
SupaKeeper is published by LunarWerx, which makes some of the tools compared here.
AI News by Smol AI and The Rundown AI are two different services, and Model Odds is a separate page for release timing. AI News by Smol AI summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1]. The Rundown AI publishes daily AI implementation guides [2] and its library contains more than 300 practical AI use cases for automating real-world work [2]. Model Odds ranks every Anthropic and OpenAI model family by its estimated chance of a release within 30 days [3]. Pick by the question you have: the question of what AI people are saying today points to AI News by Smol AI, the question of how to apply AI at work points to The Rundown AI, and the question of when an Anthropic or OpenAI model family may release points to Model Odds.
| Option | What its sources say it does | Cost | Account or install |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI News by Smol AI | Its page says it summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1]; users can subscribe by RSS [1]; it is a smol service by @swyx and other Smol AI friends [1] | not published | not published in the facts |
| The Rundown AI | Its library contains more than 300 practical AI use cases for automating real-world work [2]. Its page says subscribers get unlimited access to all current and upcoming industry-specific AI courses for the duration of their subscription [2]. It runs weekly live, interactive sessions with industry leaders [2] | not published | not published in the facts |
| Model Odds | It ranks every Anthropic and OpenAI model family by its estimated chance of a release within 30 days [3]; it runs three estimators side by side and publishes the spread between them [3]; a reader can sign up with a confirmed email to get alerts [3] | free, no account needed [3] | no account [3]; a website with a public API [3] |
The short answer
AI News by Smol AI and The Rundown AI are two different services, and Model Odds is a separate page for release timing. AI News by Smol AI summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1]. The Rundown AI publishes daily AI implementation guides [2] and its library contains more than 300 practical AI use cases for automating real-world work [2]. Model Odds ranks every Anthropic and OpenAI model family by its estimated chance of a release within 30 days [3]. If a reader wants to know what the AI community is discussing, AI News by Smol AI is built for that [1]. If a reader wants practical ways to apply AI at work, The Rundown AI is built for that [2]. If a reader wants a release outlook for Anthropic and OpenAI, Model Odds is built for that [3].
What AI News by Smol AI, The Rundown AI is built for
AI News by Smol AI summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1]. Its page says the service respects user privacy [1]. Its page says users can subscribe by RSS [1]. The Rundown AI's library contains more than 300 practical AI use cases for automating real-world work [2]. Its page says subscribers get unlimited access to all current and upcoming industry-specific AI courses for the duration of their subscription [2]. The Rundown AI runs weekly live, interactive sessions with industry leaders [2].
What Model Odds is built for
Model Odds is made by the team that publishes this site. It ranks every Anthropic and OpenAI model family by its estimated chance of a release within 30 days [3]. Anthropic and OpenAI each get their own page that lists every past release [3]. It runs three estimators side by side and publishes the spread between them as the error bar [3]. The estimate is a renewal process fitted on the gaps between recent launches, and it takes into account how long the current wait has already lasted [3]. Each past launch has to be confirmed by an official post and an independent timeline, and it is listed with its date [3]. Signals read automatically from company SDKs and docs, and from third-party model catalogues when two of them agree, can only raise the odds [3]. The estimator can replay any past date without using data from after that date [3].
Pricing and fees
Model Odds is free, and so is its API, with no account needed [3]. The facts given here do not state a dollar price for AI News by Smol AI [1] or for The Rundown AI [2], so those are not published here. The Rundown AI facts describe subscriber access to industry-specific AI courses [2] and weekly live sessions [2], but no price for any of them. The AI News by Smol AI facts say nothing about a price either. The only price stated in the facts for any of the three options is free for Model Odds [3]. If a reader needs the cost of either rival for their own use, check its own pages, since the facts here do not state one.
Setting it up and daily use
Model Odds is a web app that runs in the browser and needs JavaScript [3]. It is a website with a public API [3]. A reader can sign up with a confirmed email to get alerts, and every subscriber gets every company's drops at the same time [3]. The website and the API share one snapshot that is cached for up to five minutes [3]. For AI News by Smol AI, the facts say users can subscribe by RSS [1] and that the service respects user privacy [1]. For The Rundown AI, subscribers get unlimited access to all current and upcoming industry-specific AI courses for the duration of their subscription [2], and the service runs weekly live, interactive sessions with industry leaders [2]. The facts here say nothing more about setup or routine use for the two rivals, so check the tools' own pages for anything further.
Things to check before you choose
Ask what a reader needs the tool to tell them. AI News by Smol AI sends a daily roundup of AI community discussion [1], The Rundown AI offers use cases, courses and workshops [2] [2] [2], and Model Odds estimates release chances for Anthropic and OpenAI families [3]. Ask whether a reader wants release timing specifically; the rivals' facts say nothing about release dates, so check their pages for that before choosing them for it. Ask what delivery suits a reader: RSS is described for AI News by Smol AI [1], while The Rundown AI facts describe courses and live sessions [2] [2]. Ask what a reader is willing to pay; Model Odds is free [3], and the facts here give no charge for the two rivals. Ask whether live sessions matter; The Rundown AI runs weekly live sessions [2].
How to choose
Match the need to the tool whose sources say it meets it. For a daily roundup of what AI communities are discussing, AI News by Smol AI is built for that [1]. For practical AI use cases, courses and live sessions at work, The Rundown AI is built for that [2] [2] [2]. For an estimate of when an Anthropic or OpenAI model family may release, Model Odds is built for that [3]. For a service a reader can watch without paying, Model Odds is free [3]. Pick the tool whose daily output matches the question a reader is asking, since each of the three answers a different one.
Frequently asked questions
Is AI News by Smol AI free to use?
The facts given here do not state a dollar price for AI News by Smol AI [1]. Its page says the service summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1], and that users can subscribe by RSS [1], and that it respects user privacy [1]. No fact states a fee, so check its own pages for the cost.
Does The Rundown AI cost anything?
The facts given here do not state a dollar price for The Rundown AI [2]. Its library contains more than 300 practical AI use cases for automating real-world work [2], and subscribers get unlimited access to all current and upcoming industry-specific AI courses for the duration of their subscription [2], but no fact states a fee. Check its own pages if a reader needs the cost.
Is Model Odds free?
Yes. Model Odds is free, and so is its API, with no account needed [3]. It is a web app that runs in the browser and needs JavaScript [3], and it is a website with a public API [3]. A reader can sign up with a confirmed email to get alert emails at no stated charge [3].
Can Model Odds tell when an Anthropic or OpenAI model may release?
Yes. Model Odds ranks every Anthropic and OpenAI model family by its estimated chance of a release within 30 days [3]. The estimate is a renewal process fitted on the gaps between recent launches, and it takes into account how long the current wait has already lasted [3]. It runs three estimators side by side and publishes the spread between them as the error bar [3].
What does AI News by Smol AI send each day?
AI News by Smol AI summarizes top AI Discords, AI Reddits and AI X/Twitters and sends a roundup each day [1]. Its page says the service respects user privacy [1] and that users can subscribe by RSS [1]. The facts here say no more about what it sends, so check its own page for further detail.
Model Odds is free, and so is its API, with no account needed. [3]
Try Model OddsSources
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