Zhipu AI Launches ZCode to Challenge Claude Code and OpenAI Codex at Lower Cost

Zhipu AI has officially launched ZCode, a development environment integrating its GLM-5.2 model, designed for complex coding tasks with an emphasis on long-context processing. New users can enjoy a 5-day free trial with up to 5 million tokens per day, while subscribers receive approximately 1.5 times the token quota until July 2026. This pricing strategy is significantly lower than that of Claude Code and OpenAI Codex, lowering the barrier for developers to use high-quality code models. For developers using code-assistance tools, especially startups or individual developers, ZCode's low-cost plan effectively saves API expenses while still leveraging the advantages of long-context models for complex tasks. For users accustomed to paid services, ZCode offers a practical alternative, particularly in budget-sensitive scenarios.