# Kimi K2.6

Long-horizon coding sessions with native vision input. Kimi K2.6 sustains thousands of tool calls across hours of execution and produces frontend output with deliberate design choices.

- **Model ID:** `moonshotai/kimi-k2.6`
- **Type:** chat
- **Providers:** moonshotai, novita
- **Context window:** 262,144
- **Maximum output tokens:** 262,144
- **Pricing:** $0.8/1M input tokens, $3.4/1M output tokens
- **Canonical page:** https://vercel.com/ai-gateway/models/kimi-k2.6

## Supported parameters

Detailed capability metadata has not been reported for this model.

## Example

```ts
import { streamText } from 'ai'

const result = streamText({
  model: 'moonshotai/kimi-k2.6',
  prompt: 'Why is the sky blue?'
})
```

## About

Kimi K2.6, released on April 20, 2026, is the natively multimodal successor in the Kimi line. Moonshot AI positions it around three capability areas: long-horizon execution, agentic coding, and design with code.

Long-horizon coding is the headline shift from earlier K2 variants. Kimi K2.6 sustains tool-use chains across thousands of calls in a single session, with reported workloads spanning many hours of continuous execution and iterative optimization across a codebase. The model maintains task state across these extended sessions rather than losing thread after a few dozen turns.

Native vision input changes how design tasks compose. Kimi K2.6 accepts images directly, so a screenshot or mockup can drive a frontend generation step without a separate vision model in the pipeline. Moonshot AI documents output that includes structured layouts, hero sections, interactive elements, and animations, rather than syntax-level scaffolding alone. Full-stack workflows that pair frontend output with authentication, user interaction, and database operations are part of the documented scope.

Access Kimi K2.6 through AI Gateway by setting the model string to `moonshotai/kimi-k2.6`. AI Gateway routes across Moonshot AI, Novita AI with automatic failover, and the observability layer tracks token usage and costs across the long sessions this model is built for.

Kimi K2.6 supports a context window of 262.1K tokens and completions up to 262.1K tokens per request. It's available through AI Gateway at $0.8 per million input tokens and $3.4 per million output tokens.

## What to consider

Kimi K2.6 runs the longest agentic sessions in the Kimi family. Plan token budgets around extended tool-use chains and verify your agent harness handles multi-hour execution windows. Vision input is native, so a separate vision model isn't required for design or screenshot tasks.

## When to use

### Best For

- Long-horizon coding agents that run for hours, accumulate thousands of tool calls, and iterate across a full codebase
- Frontend generation from visual inputs (screenshots, mockups, design references) where native vision removes a separate vision step
- Full-stack scaffolding that spans UI, authentication, user interaction, and database operations from a single model
- Teams upgrading from Kimi K2.5 who want stronger long-horizon execution and design output

### Consider Alternatives When

- You need extended chain-of-thought reasoning traces. Kimi K2 Thinking is built for that
- Your workload finishes in a few turns and doesn't benefit from long-horizon execution. Kimi K2 Turbo runs the K2 MoE without the longer-session emphasis
- Cost per token dominates and earlier K2 variants meet your quality bar
- The pipeline is text-only with no vision step. A text-only K2 variant may be a closer fit

## Best for

- **Long-horizon coding agents:** Sessions that run for hours, accumulate thousands of tool calls, and iterate across a full codebase
- **Vision-to-frontend pipelines:** Frontend generation from screenshots, mockups, or design references without a separate vision step
- **Full-stack scaffolding:** Workflows spanning UI, authentication, user interaction, and database operations from one model
- **Kimi K2.5 upgrade path:** Teams that want stronger long-horizon execution and design output than K2.5 provides

## Consider alternatives

- **Explicit reasoning traces:** Kimi K2 Thinking emits chain-of-thought output for tasks that reward visible deliberation
- **Short-horizon throughput:** Kimi K2 Turbo runs the K2 MoE without the longer-session emphasis when tasks finish in a few turns
- **Cost-sensitive deployments:** Earlier K2 variants may meet your quality bar at lower cost per token
- **Text-only pipelines:** A text-only K2 variant is a closer fit when no vision step is needed

## Frequently asked questions

### What makes Kimi K2.6 different from Kimi K2.5?

Long-horizon execution and design output. Moonshot AI documents sustained tool-use chains across thousands of calls and frontend generation with structured layouts, hero sections, and animations. Vision input is native, so screenshots and mockups feed directly into the model without a separate vision step.

### How long can Kimi K2.6 sustain a single agentic session?

Moonshot AI reports workloads spanning many hours of continuous execution with thousands of tool calls in a single session. Plan your agent harness around extended runs and budget tokens for the accumulated history.

### Does Kimi K2.6 accept image inputs directly?

Yes. Kimi K2.6 is natively multimodal, so screenshots, mockups, and design references go in alongside text prompts. Confirm modality limits on https://platform.kimi.ai/docs/pricing/chat before you build a vision-heavy pipeline.

### What kind of frontend code does Kimi K2.6 produce?

Moonshot AI documents output with structured layouts, hero sections, interactive elements, and animations, plus full-stack scaffolding that spans authentication, user interaction, and database operations.

### How do I switch from an earlier Kimi K2 variant to kimi-k2.6?

Update the model string in your API call to `moonshotai/kimi-k2.6`. Authentication, tool-calling format, and the rest of the integration stay the same.

### How do I use Kimi K2.6 on AI Gateway?

Use the identifier `moonshotai/kimi-k2.6` with the AI SDK or any supported interface like Chat Completions, Responses, or Messages. AI Gateway routes across `moonshotai`, `novita` and handles failover automatically.

### Does Kimi K2.6 support zero data retention?

Yes, Zero Data Retention is available for this model. Zero Data Retention is offered on a per-provider basis. See https://vercel.com/docs/ai-gateway/capabilities/zdr for details.

## Links

- [Model page](https://vercel.com/ai-gateway/models/kimi-k2.6)
- [AI Gateway documentation](https://vercel.com/docs/ai-gateway)
- [Provider model documentation](https://platform.kimi.ai/docs/pricing/chat)


If you encounter incorrect information, can’t find what you need, need a capability Vercel doesn’t currently offer, or have any other feedback to report, please do it by following the instructions at https://vercel.com/feedback.md.