GLM 5 Turbo vs GLM 4.5 Air (free)

GLM-5 Turbo is a new model by Z.ai built for fast inference and strong performance in agent-based environments like OpenClaw scenarios. It is heavily optimized for real-world agent workflows with long execution chains, offering better decomposition of complex instructions, improved tool use, scheduled and persistent execution, and greater stability throughout extended tasks.

GLM-4.5-Air is the lightweight version of our newest flagship model family, designed specifically for agent-focused applications. Like GLM-4.5, it uses a Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) architecture, but with a smaller parameter footprint. GLM-4.5-Air also supports hybrid inference modes, including a "thinking mode" for deeper reasoning and tool usage, and a "non-thinking mode" for real-time interactions.