Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free)
Inking Small from Thinking Machines is an AI model capable of processing text, images, and audio inputs, with a significant context length of 262,144 tokens and similar for max completion. It supports tools and reasoning but does not generate structured output. While it’s free to use, its performance in benchmarks-scoring 69.1 out of 100 across three independent tests-is average compared to other models. This makes Inking Small a viable option for those who need versatile modalities and can afford lower benchmark scores or are just starting their AI projects without stringent requirements.
Benchmark results
Independent, published benchmarks. Blended score 69.1 across 3 benchmarks, last refreshed 2026-08-22. How scoring works →
| Benchmark | Measures | Score |
|---|---|---|
| AI Index | broad capability composite | 67.9 |
| AI Index Coding | software engineering tasks | 87.4 |
| AI Index Agentic | multi-step tool-using tasks | 52.6 |
- Model ID
- thinkingmachines/inkling-small:free
- Vendor
- thinkingmachines
- Released
- July 2026
- Tokenizer
- Other
- Input Modalities
- text, image, audio
- Output Modalities
- text
- Max Output
- 262,144 tokens
- Tool Calling
- ✓ supported
- Structured Output
- not supported
- Reasoning Mode
- ✓ supported
- Vision
- ✓ accepts images
- Audio
- ✓ accepts audio
- Moderated
- no
Category rankings
Where Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free) places across the 2 categories it ranks in. How we rank →
| # | Category | Score |
|---|---|---|
| #20 | Audio SummarizationVoice · of 25 ranked | 147 |
| #24 | TranscriptionVoice · of 25 ranked | 121 |
Similar models
Thinking Machines: Inkling (free)
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Thinking Machines: Inkling (batch)
Quick answers
- Is Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free) free to use?
- Yes. It is currently listed at no cost per token via OpenRouter, subject to provider rate limits.
- What is Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free)'s context window?
- 262,144 tokens, roughly 393 pages of text in a single request.
- Does Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free) support tool calling?
- It supports tool calling, a reasoning mode.
- Can Thinking Machines: Inkling Small (free) process images?
- Yes, it accepts image input.