The LLM landscape is moving fast. Here is how to make smart, future-proof choices.
Start with Use Case, Not Model
A model is just a tool. Define the job first: customer service? Code generation? Document analysis? Each has different requirements.
The Decision Framework
- **Quality matters most**: GPT-4 or Claude 3.5 Sonnet - **Cost matters most**: GPT-4o-mini or Claude Haiku - **Privacy matters most**: Self-hosted Llama or Mistral - **Speed matters most**: Groq with Llama or Gemini Flash
Avoid Vendor Lock-in
Use abstraction layers like the Vercel AI SDK so you can swap models in minutes, not months. The model you pick today probably will not be the best one in 6 months.