Why “Cost” is being discussed
The most recent Hacker News stories and comments contributing to this topic's mentions.
> That doesn't make sense. If the cost of RAM is high and being used by models then yes, you should try to use less RAM. No, that's not the conclusion. If using models costs you…
by pron · Oct 31, 2026
That doesn't make sense. If the cost of RAM is high and being used by models then yes, you should try to use less RAM. Using opposite logic is not good engineering. Seriously, w…
by neuroelectron · Oct 31, 2026
> I don't know why you needed a paragraph to say that 1000% memory inflation is a trade-off to optimize dev costs Because that's not what I said. My point was more that a "1000%…
by pron · Oct 31, 2026
Thank you for the nod to Metamorphosis of the Prime Intellect! I’ve been meaning to revisit it for dog’s years and now I have the impetus :) Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom co…
by alwa · Oct 31, 2026
> The exact opposite is true. The only consistently working, stable democracies do not have a single leader of the executive branch, e.g. Switzerland. That's correlation, not ca…
by lossolo · Oct 31, 2026
To be fair, based on the profit margins indicated in DeepSeek’s reports, a $500 API credit might only cost them $5 to provide.
by zxilly · Oct 31, 2026
Interest
Proportion of Hacker News items mentioning "cost" over time.
Mentions
Total number of Hacker News items mentioning "cost" over time.
Cost is the value of money that has been used up to produce something or deliver a service, and hence is not available for use anymore. In business, the cost may be one of acquisition, in which case the amount of money expended to acquire it is counted as cost. In this case, money is the input that is gone in order to acquire the thing. This acquisition cost may be the sum of the cost of production as incurred by the original producer, and further costs of transaction as incurred by the acquirer over and above the price paid to the producer. Usually, the price also includes a mark-up for profit over the cost of production. Read more on Wikipedia