GPT-6.1 Sol vs Nemotron 3.5 Lightning
GPT-6.1 Sol took 12 min 10 s and $0.37 at list price, Nemotron 3.5 Lightning took 10 min 9 s and $0.012 at list price. GPT-6.1 Sol took 1.2× as long and cost 31× as much.
GPT-6.1 Sol
OpenAI · $10.00/M out · 1,166 HN pts
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning
NVIDIA · $0.20/M out · free route · 399 HN pts
Pelican
Generate an SVG of a pelican riding a bicycle
Watch
Draw a mechanical wristwatch that shows the current local time, with a sweeping seconds hand and a date window. Make it look expensive.
Landing
Build the landing page for Lumen Cycles, a Copenhagen workshop that builds custom cargo bikes to order. Make it look like a real brand you would trust with 4,000 euros.
Breakout
Make a Breakout game I can play right now with the keyboard or the mouse. Give it several levels, a score and some juice.
Logo
Design a logo for Night Heron, an independent bookshop that only opens after dark.
About
Write the opening of the About us page for Patchbay, a three-person studio in Rotterdam that repairs vintage synthesizers. About 150 words.
Patchbay is a three-person studio in Rotterdam, keeping vintage synthesizers in working hands. We repair the instruments that have picked up a crackle, lost a voice, drifted out of tune, or stopped making sound altogether.
We like the patient side of repair: tracing a fault, understanding an old circuit, and finding the right fix rather than the quickest workaround. Our aim is to make each instrument dependable without sanding away the character that made someone fall for it in the first place.
Some synths arrive with a clear problem. Others come with a story and a noise that only happens after twenty minutes. Either way, the work starts with listening—to the instrument and to the person who plays it.
We’re a small studio by choice. It keeps us close to the work, and to the musicians who trust us with something they want to keep making music with.
Patchbay is a three-person studio in Rotterdam devoted to the restoration and repair of vintage synthesizers. We believe analog gear holds a living voice, and our purpose is to safeguard that sound for musicians, collectors, and creators who value authenticity. With hands-on experience in circuitry, voltage calibration, and component preservation, we treat every console, drum machine, or modular voice with meticulous care. Rotterdam’s eclectic artistic community fuels our commitment to keeping analog heritage alive, bridging past technology with present music. Whether rescuing a neglected lab unit or reviving a cherished polysynth, we approach each instrument as a unique piece of musical history, ensuring it performs as intended for years ahead. We love helping artists reconnect with the warmth and character only vintage hardware can offer. Our workshop sits in the heart of the city, where dusty circuit boards meet fresh compositions, and every repaired synth becomes part of a new musical story.
Specs and numbers
| GPT-6.1 Sol | Nemotron 3.5 Lightning | |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | OpenAI | NVIDIA |
| Made in | US | US |
| Released | 29 Sep 2026 | 11 Aug 2026 |
| Price in, per M tokens | $2.00 | free route (list $0.07/M) |
| Price out, per M tokens | $10.00 | free route (list $0.20/M) |
| Context | 1,050,000 tokens | 262,144 tokens |
| Weights | closed | open |
| Hacker News points | 1,166 | 399 |
| Time for the six prompts | 12 min 10 s | 10 min 9 s |
| List price of the six prompts | $0.37 | $0.012 |
Nemotron 3.5 Lightning was cheaper: $0.36 less at list price, and less on each of the 6 prompts. Nemotron 3.5 Lightning was faster: 2 min less in total, and faster on 3 of the 6 prompts.
In the recording, both Breakout games play.
Rebuild this screen experiment: GPT-6.1 Sol's rebuild matched the screenshot at 97%; Nemotron 3.5 Lightning was not in it. Tea Garden experiment: GPT-6.1 Sol's game passed 5 of 5 checks; Nemotron 3.5 Lightning was not in it.