A new AI model named Ox Alpha has emerged from the shadows, and the internet is collectively squinting at it like a detective in a noir film, trying to figure out who on earth built the thing.

The free model popped up on OpenRouter on Thursday, described in the listing as "a reasoning model designed for coding, sustained agentic work, and production workload." Naturally, Stripe CEO Patrick Collison - whose company is in the process of acquiring OpenRouter - took to X to declare Ox Alpha "very impressive." Because nothing says unbiased review like the CEO of the company that hosts the model.

The listing itself is delightfully coy, calling Ox Alpha a "stealth model" and noting it was "developed and operated by a third-party provider who has chosen to remain anonymous during this preview." Anonymous? In the AI world? That's like a cat choosing to stay hidden in a room full of laser pointers.

As you might expect, the speculation wheel has spun and landed on China. AI analyst Andrew Curran noted on Friday that initial theories pointed to GLM models from Chinese company Z.ai, but "this morning people seem less sure of anything." Classic internet move: start with a theory, then immediately doubt it.

Over at Wccftech, an article first suggested the evidence pointed to GLM, but then an update floated the idea that Ox Alpha could be an unreleased version of Microsoft's MAI. Meanwhile, Reddit is doing what Reddit does best: one post declares Ox Alpha "can't be the Chinese," while another expresses "high confidence" that it is, in fact, Chinese. So, to summarize: it's either Chinese, not Chinese, Microsoft, or possibly a very elaborate prank by a bored teenager. We'll keep you updated as the mystery deepens.