Fugu Ultra v2 vs MiniMax M3.1 Flash
Pricing, context window and real answers (October 2026)
Fugu Ultra v2 (Sakana AI) and MiniMax M3.1 Flash (MiniMax), compared as you can actually call them on FastMetal. Both are served from the same OpenAI-compatible endpoint and API key; switching is a change to the model string.
Specs and pricing
| Fugu Ultra v2 |  MiniMax M3.1 Flash | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider | Sakana AI | MiniMax |
| Input (per 1M tokens) | $5.50 | $0.1583 |
| Output (per 1M tokens) | $33.00 | $0.633 |
| Typical cost (1,000 in + 500 out tokens × 1,000 calls) | $22.00 | $0.4748 |
| Context window | 1,000,000 tokens | 1,048,576 tokens |
| Release date | 9/11/2026 | 10/19/2026 |
| Input modalities | text, image, file | text, image |
| Throughput (p50) | 22222 tokens/s (n=24) | — |
| Arena · overall | Unranked | Unranked |
| Arena · Japanese | Unranked | Unranked |
| Arena · coding | Unranked | Unranked |
Prices are FastMetal's rates, before tax.
Rankings: LMArena leaderboard dataset (lmarena-ai/leaderboard-dataset), CC BY 4.0, snapshot 2026-10-15; category names mapped and ratings rounded by FastMetal.
Which should you pick?
- On price, MiniMax M3.1 Flash: $0.633 per 1M output tokens, 98% less than Fugu Ultra v2.
- For long documents, MiniMax M3.1 Flash: a 1,048,576-token context window against 1,000,000 for Fugu Ultra v2.
- If in doubt, try both on the same key. Switching is a change to the model string, and each is billed at its own rate.
Real answers to the same prompts
Exactly what the FastMetal gateway returned, side by side. Not benchmark scores: actual output.
Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'
Count the number of 'r's in 'strawberry'. Explain your reasoning step by step.
Fugu Ultra v2
**Answer: 3**
**Step-by-step reasoning:**
1. **Write out the word letter by letter**, assigning each a position:
| Position | Letter | Is it 'r'? |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | s | no |
| 2 | t | no |
| 3 | **r** | ✅ yes |
| 4 | a | no |
| 5 | w | no |
| 6 | b | no |
| 7 | e | no |
| 8 | **r** | ✅ yes |
| 9 | **r** | ✅ yes |
| 10 | y | no |
2. **Tally the matches:** positions 3, 8, and 9 are 'r'.
3. **Sanity check by chunks:** "straw" contains one 'r' (str**a**w → the r in "str"), and "berry" contains two 'r's (be**rr**y). 1 + 2 = 3.
4. **Verify length:** the letters counted total 10, which matches the length of "strawberry" — so no letter was skipped or double-counted.
**Conclusion:** There a…
10.2s435 output tokens
MiniMax M3.1 Flash
1. Spell **strawberry**:
**s – t – r – a – w – b – e – r – r – y**
2. Count the letter **r**: it appears at positions **3, 8, and 9**.
**Total: 3 “r”s.**
3.0s193 output tokens
Debug This Error
I'm getting the following error in my Node.js application: TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map') at UserList (/app/components/UserList.js:12:25) at renderWithHooks (/app/node_modules/rea…
Fugu Ultra v2
## What the error means
`TypeError: Cannot read properties of undefined (reading 'map')` means that when `UserList` rendered, `users` was `undefined`, and JavaScript can't read the `.map` property off `undefined`.
The important detail: **the bug isn't really in `UserList`** — that's just where it surfaces. Destructuring `function UserList({ users })` does *not* throw when the prop is missing; it silently gives you `undefined`. The crash is deferred to the first property access, which is `.map` on line 12.
So the real question is: why is `props.users` not an array?
## Why `users` is undefined
**1. Async data hasn't arrived yet — by far the most common cause.**
```jsx
const [users, setUs…
70.8s5286 output tokens
MiniMax M3.1 Flash
The error occurs because `users` is `undefined` when `UserList` renders. Calling `.map()` on `undefined` causes the `TypeError`.
This commonly happens when:
- `<UserList />` is rendered without passing the `users` prop.
- The prop has a different name, such as `user`.
- Data is still loading and the parent initializes its state as `undefined`.
- An API response is accessed before it exists.
### Immediate fix
Provide a default empty array:
```jsx
function UserList({ users = [] }) {
return (
<ul>
{users.map(user => (
<li key={user.id}>{user.name}</li>
))}
</ul>
);
}
```
Then pass the actual data from the parent:
```jsx
const [users, setUsers] = useState([…
7.3s744 output tokens
Code Review
Please review the following Python function and suggest improvements for readability, performance, and best practices: def get_data(url, retries=3): import requests import time for i in range(retries):…
Fugu Ultra v2
# Final Code Review: `get_data`
The function is compact and its intent is clear, but as written it will **fail silently in production**. Two defects dominate everything else:
1. The bare `except:` swallows every error — including `KeyboardInterrupt` and genuine logic bugs.
2. A total failure and a legitimately empty dataset both return `[]`, so callers cannot tell "the service is down" from "there are no active records."
Together these mean an outage looks exactly like a successful empty response. Everything else below is meaningful improvement; those two are the difference between code that fails loudly and code that fails invisibly.
---
## 1. Correctness and error handling
### 1.1 `e…
281.1s23317 output tokens
MiniMax M3.1 Flash
The function is understandable, but it has a few important issues:
- `except:` catches programming errors such as `KeyError`, `TypeError`, and even `KeyboardInterrupt`.
- Every non-200 response is retried, including permanent failures such as 400, 401, and 404.
- It sleeps after the final failed attempt.
- Returning `[]` makes a failed request indistinguishable from a successful response containing no active records.
- A fixed delay can cause clients to retry simultaneously; exponential backoff and `Retry-After` are preferable.
- `item["active"] == True` should be `item.get("active") is True` if the API contract says it is a JSON boolean.
- A `Session` can reuse connections, while `requests…
146.5s
Frequently asked questions
- Which is cheaper, Fugu Ultra v2 or MiniMax M3.1 Flash?
- Per 1M output tokens, Fugu Ultra v2 is $33.00 and MiniMax M3.1 Flash is $0.633 on FastMetal (US dollars, before tax), so MiniMax M3.1 Flash is cheaper.
- How do the context windows of Fugu Ultra v2 and MiniMax M3.1 Flash compare?
- Fugu Ultra v2 takes 1,000,000 tokens; MiniMax M3.1 Flash takes 1,048,576.
- Can I use Fugu Ultra v2 and MiniMax M3.1 Flash with the same API key?
- Yes. On FastMetal's OpenAI-compatible endpoint, switch by passing "fugu-ultra-v2" or "minimax-m3.1-flash" as the model. Each is billed at its own rate from the same prepaid balance.
Try both on one API key
Create an account and add credit to call Fugu Ultra v2 and MiniMax M3.1 Flash from the browser chat and the API. No monthly fee.