Amazon's Nova 2 Lite and Pro families undercut OpenAI, Google on price
Why does Amazon’s latest AI push matter now? The cloud giant rolled out two new model lines—Nova 2 Lite and Nova 2 Pro—while openly betting on cost versus capability. In a market where OpenAI and Google dominate headline numbers, Amazon is choosing a different angle: it’s matching its offerings against the big players on price‑performance grounds.
That strategy isn’t just marketing fluff; it’s being put to the test by an independent benchmark. Artificial Analysis ran a series of evaluations, tracking each model on the firm’s internal scoring system. Their latest figures show the Nova 2.0 Pro (Preview) climbing 30 points, nudging it close to the scores posted by the leading services.
The data point hints at a narrowing gap, even if the Amazon variants still lag the top‑tier options. Readers will see how these numbers translate into real‑world value, especially when the headline numbers are framed against the industry’s heavyweights. The upcoming quote lays out exactly how Amazon positions its new hardware in that competitive arithmetic.
Amazon introduced the Nova 2 Lite and Nova 2 Pro families and continues to position them through direct price-performance comparisons with OpenAI and Google. A test series from Artificial Analysis showed that Nova 2.0 Pro (Preview) gained 30 points in the firm's internal index and now sits near the top group, though it still trails the leading models from other vendors. Nova 2.0 Pro is listed at 1.25 dollars per million input tokens and 10 dollars for output.
According to Artificial Analysis, a benchmark run cost about 662 dollars with Nova 2.0 Pro, compared to 817 dollars for Claude 4.5 Sonnet and 1,201 dollars for Google Gemini 3 Pro. Amazon also introduced Nova Forge, which allows companies to include their own data during the model's training phase rather than relying solely on fine-tuning.
Does price matter more than raw power? Amazon's Nova 2 Lite and Pro families arrive with lower price tags than OpenAI and Google offerings, yet they still lag behind the leading models in benchmark scores. At re:Invent 2025 the company emphasized scaling its own hardware, showcasing the third‑generation Trainium3 UltraServer built on a 3‑nanometer process that promises four times the speed and memory of its predecessor and a 40 percent efficiency gain.
By reducing reliance on Nvidia, AWS hopes to cut AI workload costs, a goal reflected in the Nova 2 lineup's shift toward more autonomous tool behavior rather than simple assistant‑style interactions. Artificial Analysis reported that Nova 2.0 Pro (Preview) climbed 30 points in its internal index, now sitting near the upper tier, though exact placement relative to competitors remains unclear. The price‑performance narrative is clear, but whether the hardware advances translate into broader adoption is uncertain.
A cheaper option. Ultimately, Amazon presents a cheaper alternative, but the gap to top‑tier performance persists, it's a factor customers must weigh against capability.
Further Reading
- Amazon Nova 2 Models Challenge OpenAI and Google with Aggressive Pricing Strategy - TechCrunch
- Amazon's Nova 2 Lite and Pro Families Undercut Competitors on Cost-Performance - The Verge
- How Amazon Nova 2 is Reshaping the AI Market with Budget-Friendly Foundation Models - ArXiv
- Amazon's Latest AI Push: Nova 2 Models Compete Directly with OpenAI and Google - Forbes
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Common Questions Answered
How does the pricing of Amazon's Nova 2 Pro compare to OpenAI and Google models?
Nova 2 Pro is priced at $1.25 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens, which is significantly lower than the rates typically charged by OpenAI and Google. This aggressive pricing is part of Amazon's strategy to compete on cost‑performance rather than raw capability.
What benchmark improvement did Nova 2.0 Pro (Preview) achieve according to Artificial Analysis?
In the Artificial Analysis benchmark, Nova 2.0 Pro (Preview) gained 30 points on the firm’s internal index, moving it near the top tier of models. Despite this gain, it still trails the leading offerings from OpenAI and Google in overall scores.
What hardware advancements did Amazon showcase at re:Invent 2025 for its AI infrastructure?
At re:Invent 2025 Amazon highlighted the third‑generation Trainium3 UltraServer built on a 3‑nanometer process, delivering four times the speed and memory of its predecessor. The new server also promises a 40 percent efficiency gain, helping AWS reduce its reliance on Nvidia GPUs.
Why does Amazon emphasize price‑performance in its Nova 2 Lite and Pro families?
Amazon positions Nova 2 Lite and Pro as lower‑cost alternatives to the dominant OpenAI and Google models, aiming to attract customers who prioritize cost over absolute performance. The strategy is reinforced by independent benchmark results that show competitive, though not leading, scores at a fraction of the price.