Mistral AI Assistant Now Available on iOS and Android

Mistral AI Updates: Le Chat Assistant and Mobile App Launch

Mistral, a company frequently cited as a leading AI innovator in Europe, is announcing several enhancements to its AI assistant, Le Chat. These updates include a significant overhaul of the web interface and the introduction of a dedicated mobile application for both iOS and Android platforms.

Mistral's Large Language Models

As a background, Mistral independently develops its own large language models (LLMs). Its prominent models, including Mistral Large and the multimodal Pixtral Large, are commercially accessible via an API or through cloud partnerships.

• Partnerships include Azure AI Studio.
• Amazon Bedrock provides access.
• Google’s Vertex AI is also a distribution channel.

Furthermore, Mistral releases several open-weight models under the permissive Apache 2.0 license.

Positioning Against Industry Leaders

Mistral aims to establish itself as a viable alternative to established AI companies like OpenAI and Anthropic. Beyond the development of foundational models, Le Chat directly competes with popular AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot.

Mobile App Availability

To enhance its competitive standing, Mistral is now releasing a mobile version of Le Chat. This aims to secure a prominent position on users’ mobile devices. The app provides a standard chatbot interface.

Users can interact with Mistral’s AI model and engage in conversational follow-up questions through this intuitive interface.

Recent Le Chat Enhancements

Over recent months, Le Chat has evolved into a capable AI assistant. In November 2023, Mistral integrated web search functionality with citations. The assistant also gained the ability to generate images.

Additionally, users can now utilize a free-form canvas for editing text or code in a dedicated window.

A recent partnership with Agence France-Presse (AFP) aims to improve the reliability of results through robust information sourcing. Currently, the mobile app does not include a voice mode for users who prefer speech-based interaction.

Introducing Le Chat Pro

Alongside the Le Chat update, Mistral is introducing a Pro tier subscription priced at $14.99 per month, or €14.99 per month in Europe. While specific model details are no longer disclosed, the Pro plan offers access to the “highest-performing model.”

This suggests that users with free accounts may not have access to the most advanced model available.

Additional Pro Benefits

Subscribers to the Pro tier will also benefit from increased usage limits. Furthermore, they have the option to prevent their data from being shared with Mistral.

This implements a “pay-or-consent” model for AI assistant usage, offering users a choice between financial contribution and data sharing.

Processing Speed of Up to 1,000 Words Per Second

Mistral differentiates itself not through claims of superior models, but through its product capabilities. The company suggests it can, at times, exceed the performance of its rivals.

Specifically, Mistral highlights that Le Chat utilizes exceptionally rapid inference engines, capable of processing up to 1,000 words each second. Our own testing corroborated this, revealing a noticeably quicker response time compared to ChatGPT’s 4o model.

Furthermore, Mistral asserts a significant advantage in image generation, surpassing both ChatGPT and Grok in quality. This capability is attributed to the integration of Black Forest Labs’ Flux Ultra, a prominent image-generation model.

Beyond these features, a key differentiator lies within Le Chat’s enterprise-level offering. Mistral provides the option to deploy Le Chat within a user’s own infrastructure, supporting both customized models and a tailored user interface.

For industries like defense and banking, on-premise deployment of AI assistants is often a necessity. Currently, this functionality isn't available with ChatGPT Enterprise or Claude Enterprise, presenting a potential revenue growth opportunity for Mistral.

The company’s mobile application is now available, aiming to attract AI users to its chatbot platform. Currently, ChatGPT, DeepSeek, and Google Gemini occupy the No. 2, No. 3, and No. 6 positions, respectively, in terms of iPhone app downloads within the U.S.

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