July 10, 2026 · build log
Grok 4.5, build me a Star Clock
Test-driving xAI's new model by asking for the actual sky.
Grok 4.5 is out, so I gave it a job instead of a benchmark: build me a full-screen night-sky clock. Not clip-art stars — the actual sky above me, right now.
A few rounds of prompts later, this is real: star positions from the HYG catalog, the moon with its current phase, every Starlink satellite above the horizon computed from live orbital data, and the ISS when it passes overhead — projected as if you were lying on your back looking straight up. Plus a clock, a timer, and five typefaces to argue about.
It's hanging in the gallery now, running live: open Star Clock — click the sky for fullscreen, press ? for commands.