xAI dropped its Grok Imagine API on January 28, 2026, and the pricing got developers' attention fast: $4.20 per minute of generated video, native audio included. Google's Veo 3.1 runs significantly higher. Kling 3.0 sits somewhere in between but offers noticeably better cinematic quality.
If you're building an app that generates video—short clips, product demos, social content—you need to understand what each of these three APIs actually delivers before you start sending requests. This post breaks down the specs, pricing, and practical tradeoffs so you can make that call.
What Is the Grok Imagine API?
Grok Imagine is xAI's multimodal video generation model. It launched as a developer API in late January 2026 after an earlier beta inside X (Twitter). The public API accepts text, images, or existing video clips as input and returns generated video with synchronized audio.
Key specs:
- Resolution: 720p
- Max clip length: 15 seconds
- Latency: ~45 seconds per generation
- Pricing: ~$4.20/minute (~$0.07/second), audio included
- Access: Full API (no waitlist), keys at x.ai/api
What's unusual about Grok Imagine is that audio generation is bundled in—no separate TTS call needed. You send a prompt, you get a video clip with synchronized ambient sound or speech. For most use cases that need audio, this pricing is actually hard to beat.
The editing features are also more capable than competitors at this price point: you can swap objects in a scene, restyle backgrounds, and animate static characters. These aren't just generation features—they're closer to programmatic video editing.
Kling 3.0: The Cinematic Option
Kling 3.0, from Kuaishou, is the option you reach for when quality matters more than cost. It consistently produces higher-resolution, more visually coherent clips than most competitors at equivalent prompts. If you're building a product demo generator or a high-end creative tool, Kling 3.0 output looks more like professionally produced video.
Key specs:
- Resolution: Up to 1080p
- Clip length: Up to 10 seconds (standard), 3 minutes (professional tier)
- Quality: Cinematic motion smoothness, strong prompt adherence
- Pricing: Higher per-minute cost than Grok Imagine; varies by tier
- Access: Available via ModelsLab API
The tradeoff is straightforward: Kling 3.0 outputs look better, but you pay more per clip. For consumer apps with high volume (thousands of generations/day), that cost difference adds up. For enterprise creative workflows where output quality directly affects the product, it's often worth it.
Veo 3.1: Google's Premium Tier
Google's Veo 3.1, available through Vertex AI and the Gemini API, is the premium-tier option. It produces 1080p video with strong temporal coherence—objects don't drift, lighting stays consistent across frames, and it handles complex scenes better than most alternatives.
Key specs:
- Resolution: Up to 1080p
- Clip length: Up to 8 seconds
- Pricing: Significantly higher than Grok Imagine; enterprise pricing through Vertex AI
- Access: Vertex AI + Gemini API (Google account required)
Veo 3.1 is optimized for enterprise teams already in the Google Cloud stack. The quality is excellent, but the pricing and access model make it a poor fit for scrappy B2C products or high-volume generation pipelines.
Direct Comparison: Grok Imagine vs Kling 3.0 vs Veo 3.1
| Feature | Grok Imagine | Kling 3.0 | Veo 3.1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Resolution | 720p | 1080p | 1080p |
| Max Clip Length | 15 seconds | 10s – 3 min | 8 seconds |
| Native Audio | ✅ Included | ❌ Separate | ❌ Separate |
| Approx. Price/Min | ~$4.20 | Higher | Highest |
| Latency | ~45 seconds | 60-120 seconds | 60-90 seconds |
| Video Quality | Good (720p) | Excellent | Excellent |
| Object Editing | ✅ Yes | Limited | Limited |
| Developer Access | Open (x.ai) | ModelsLab API | Vertex AI / GCP |
Making API Calls: Code Examples
Grok Imagine API (Python)
import requests
response = requests.post(
"https://api.x.ai/v1/imagine/video",
headers={
"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_XAI_API_KEY",
"Content-Type": "application/json"
},
json={
"prompt": "A developer typing code at a desk, soft morning light through a window",
"duration": 5,
"resolution": "720p",
"audio": True
}
)
data = response.json()
video_url = data["output"]["url"]
print(f"Generated video: {video_url}")
Grok Imagine's API follows standard REST patterns. The audio: true flag generates synchronized ambient sound at no extra charge.
Kling 3.0 via ModelsLab API (Python)
import requests
response = requests.post(
"https://modelslab.com/api/v6/video/text2video",
headers={"Content-Type": "application/json"},
json={
"key": "YOUR_MODELSLAB_API_KEY",
"model_id": "kling-v3",
"prompt": "A developer typing code at a desk, cinematic lighting, 4K quality",
"negative_prompt": "blur, distortion, low quality",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1080,
"num_frames": 81,
"fps": 24
}
)
data = response.json()
if data["status"] == "success":
print(f"Video URL: {data['output'][0]}")
ModelsLab's unified API lets you swap between Kling 3.0, Kling 2.0, and other video models by changing model_id—useful if you want to run cost/quality tradeoffs in production without re-architecting your integration.
Which API Should You Use?
The decision comes down to three variables: cost sensitivity, output quality requirements, and whether you need audio.
Use Grok Imagine if:
- You need audio in the output without an extra API call
- You're building a high-volume consumer app where $4.20/min matters at scale
- 720p is acceptable for your use case (social content, previews, quick demos)
- You want the lowest latency at the lowest price point
- You need programmatic video editing (object swap, scene restyle)
Use Kling 3.0 via ModelsLab if:
- Output quality is a key product differentiator
- You need 1080p or longer clips (up to 3 minutes)
- You want a single unified API that also gives you access to other video models
- Your users will see the video directly and will notice quality differences
Use Veo 3.1 if:
- You're already deep in Google Cloud / Vertex AI
- Enterprise SLAs and Google support are required
- Budget is secondary to output quality and infrastructure compliance
The Real Question: Where Will You Run This at Scale?
At 100 video generations per day:
- Grok Imagine (5s clips): ~$35/day
- Kling 3.0 (5s clips): Roughly 2-3x Grok Imagine
- Veo 3.1: Significantly higher depending on Vertex AI tier
For a B2C product hitting meaningful user counts, that Grok Imagine pricing is compelling. But if your product needs the visual fidelity of Kling 3.0—product visualization, creative agency tools, anything users pay for directly—the quality gap may justify the cost delta.
A practical approach: use Grok Imagine for previews or drafts, then Kling 3.0 for the final render. Many teams are already doing something similar with image generation (fast cheap model for previews, quality model for final output).
Get Started with AI Video Generation via ModelsLab
ModelsLab's video generation API gives you access to Kling 3.0 and other leading video models through a single endpoint. No separate integrations, no managing multiple API keys—swap models by changing one parameter.
You can test with a free tier key, check out the API docs, or join the developer Discord if you're building something and want direct support.
Grok Imagine is worth watching for audio-inclusive, cost-efficient generation. Kling 3.0 is the quality benchmark right now. Veo 3.1 stays enterprise-locked. That's the current state—worth re-evaluating in 3-6 months as all three providers are iterating fast.