Elon Musk’s xAI unveiled its first agentic coding model, Grok Code Fast 1, marking a move into a growing segment where major players including OpenAI and Microsoft are expanding their footprints.

xAI positioned its latest release as a “speedy and economical” model, stating it is optimised for responsiveness and real-world developer workflows.

It is designed to handle tasks ranging from codebase analysis to bug fixes and supports common programming languages Python, Java, TypeScript, Rust and C++.

The Musk-owned AI player explained the model’s strength “lies in delivering strong performance in an economical, compact form factor, making it a versatile choice for tackling common coding tasks quickly and cost-effectively”.

Agentic coding tools, or AI systems capable of autonomously executing coding tasks, have increasingly become a priority for leading tech players.

Microsoft introduced a coding agent in GitHub Copilot earlier this year, with CEO Satya Nadella stating 20 per cent to 30 per cent of code across Microsoft is now AI-generated, Reuters reported.

Meanwhile, OpenAI’s Codex, which powers parts of ChatGPT, was made available to the AI chatbot’s Plus users in June.