Is MiniMax H3 open source?What is open—and what is not.
A source-linked audit of the public H3 weights, the hosted parts of the 2K pipeline, and the MiniMax H3 Community License.
RECORD / H3-OSS-001
LAST VERIFIED / AUG 25, 2026
REVIEW CADENCE / WEEKLY
SOURCE CLASS / PRIMARY
Short answer
Partly.
MiniMax publicly released the H3-Base FL2VA and Ref2VA weights under its Community License. The complete system is not fully open: H3-Context-IR remains hosted, H3-Regenerate-2K is not yet open-sourced, and the initial sparse-attention implementation is not included. MiniMax calls the release “open source”; for deployment decisions, “open weights with a custom license” is more precise.
01 / Release map
What parts of MiniMax H3 are public?
The complete H3 workflow has multiple stages. A downloadable base model does not make every stage local.
| Component | What it does | Status | Practical result | Proof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| H3-Context-IR | Interprets and restructures complex text, image, video and audio context. | Hosted only | Use the API or build your own context-processing layer. | Source |
| H3-Base FL2VA | Text-to-video and first/last-frame video with synchronized audio. | Public BF16 weights | Local 768p video and stereo audio. | Source |
| H3-Base Ref2VA | Reference-led generation from text, images, video and audio. | Public BF16 weights | Local 768p video and stereo audio. | Source |
| H3-Regenerate-2K | Regenerates the base result at 2K using the original context. | Not yet open-sourced | The official 2K stage currently requires MiniMax API access. | Source |
| Sparse-attention implementation | Reduces inference cost for long multimodal sequences. | Not in the initial release | The initial public release uses full-attention inference. | Source |
Citable conclusion: The public release gives developers the H3-Base generation stage, not the complete hosted 2K pipeline.
02 / Terminology
Open source or open weights?
The answer changes depending on whether you are quoting the publisher or evaluating deployment rights.
Official wording
“Open source”
MiniMax's Aug 3 announcement says it is officially open-sourcing H3 and links the released model repositories. That wording is useful when describing the publisher's announcement.
Read MiniMax's announcementDeployment-precise wording
“Open weights with a custom license”
The weights are downloadable, but the entire system is not public and the license restricts territories and uses. The OSI definition also requires no discrimination against people, groups or fields of endeavor.
Review the OSI definitionThis page does not make a legal determination. It separates the official product wording from the narrower facts needed for a deployment decision.
03 / License ledger
The license limits that matter before deployment
A factual summary of the published agreement—not legal advice. Always review the current text for your use case.
Where does the standard license apply?
Worldwide except the European Union, United Kingdom, Republic of Korea and United States.
I.3, I.5, II and V.4Do the territory terms mention outputs?
Yes. Section V.4 applies its territorial restriction to H3 Works and their outputs or results.
V.4Is the hosted API covered the same way?
MiniMax says its API remains globally available because hosted access uses a different compliance model.
Official license Q&ACan a company use the weights commercially?
Within the Applicable Territory and subject to the agreement. Prior written authorization is required when relevant commercial products or services generate more than US$20 million in yearly revenue.
IV.1Is attribution required in a commercial UI?
The agreement requires commercial products or services using H3 Works to prominently display “MiniMax H3” in the interface.
IV.2Can H3 outputs improve another AI model?
The agreement prohibits using H3 Works or their outputs to improve another AI model, except MiniMax H3 or its model derivatives.
V.3Does MiniMax claim rights over generated outputs?
The agreement says MiniMax claims no rights over generated outputs; users remain responsible for those outputs and their use.
VI.404 / Practical access
What can you actually run?
Open access is real, but local H3-Base and the complete hosted H3 pipeline are not the same product surface.
Local open-weight path
- H3-Base FL2VA or Ref2VA checkpoints
- 768p output at 24 FPS with 32 kHz stereo audio
- Your own GPU, storage, framework and maintenance
- Your responsibility to review the Community License
Complete hosted path
- Hosted H3-Context-IR for complex references
- Hosted H3-Regenerate-2K for the official 2K stage
- No local checkpoint download or GPU maintenance
- Provider terms and safeguards instead of self-hosting alone
Official BF16 checkpoints and community quantizations are not interchangeable claims. Verify the publisher, format and license before treating a repack, GGUF or LoRA as an official MiniMax release.
05 / Next action
Choose the path that matches your goal
The technical guide comes after the factual decision. Each destination owns a separate search intent.
Choose the right H3 download
Compare FL2VA and Ref2VA, then download only the files your framework needs.
Open download guideHardwareCheck your GPU and VRAM
Use the evidence-based hardware checker before committing to a large local setup.
Check local hardwareWorkflowInstall H3 in ComfyUI
Follow the dedicated model placement, workflow and troubleshooting guide.
Open ComfyUI setupHosted pathCreate without local infrastructure
Use the independent MiniMax3.org generator without downloading model weights or maintaining a GPU stack.
Try H3 onlineMiniMax3.org is an independent third-party platform and is not operated by, affiliated with or endorsed by MiniMax. Hosted generation on this site is an independent service.
06 / Change record
Release and verification timeline
Jul 31, 2026
H3 announced
MiniMax launches H3 and says model weights are planned for release in the following days.
Primary sourceAug 2, 2026
Community License dated
The published MiniMax H3 Community License carries an Aug 2 release and license date.
Primary sourceAug 3, 2026
Open weights released
MiniMax publishes its open-source announcement and the official H3 model repositories.
Primary sourceAug 25, 2026
Facts re-verified
Component status, model card and license links checked against primary sources.
Primary source
07 / Direct answers
MiniMax H3 open-source FAQ
01Is MiniMax H3 fully open source?+
No—not as a complete end-to-end system. MiniMax released the H3-Base FL2VA and Ref2VA weights, while H3-Context-IR remains hosted, H3-Regenerate-2K is not yet open-sourced, and the initial sparse-attention implementation is not included.
02Which MiniMax H3 weights are public?+
MiniMax publishes two H3-Base BF16 checkpoint families: FL2VA for text and first/last-frame conditioning, and Ref2VA for multimodal reference-led generation. Both include the components needed for their supported local workflows.
03Can the MiniMax H3 open weights generate 2K locally?+
Not through the complete official pipeline today. The public H3-Base stage produces 768p output. The official 2K workflow adds H3-Regenerate-2K, which is currently a hosted stage.
04Is H3-Context-IR open source?+
No. MiniMax describes H3-Context-IR as a hosted preprocessing and orchestration system and says it is not included in the open release. Developers can use its API or build their own context-processing system.
05Is H3-Regenerate-2K open source?+
Not yet. MiniMax says the module is not yet open-sourced and will be released when ready. The official API currently provides access to the regeneration stage.
06Is MiniMax H3 free for commercial use?+
The weights are royalty-free within the license grant, but commercial use is conditional. Territory, acceptable-use, interface-labeling and authorization requirements still apply, including prior written authorization above the stated US$20 million yearly-revenue threshold.
07Can the open weights be used in the US, EU, UK or South Korea?+
Those locations are Excluded Territories under the standard Community License. MiniMax provides an application route for organizations seeking separate authorization. Hosted API access follows a different policy described in the official license Q&A.
08Where can I download the official MiniMax H3 weights?+
The primary official distribution is MiniMaxAI/MiniMax-H3 on Hugging Face. Verify the publisher before downloading, then choose FL2VA or Ref2VA for the task you plan to run.
For the difference between free open weights, Hailuo access, hosted API pricing and independent credits, see Is MiniMax H3 free to use? For repository provenance, file families and official-vs-community distinctions, see the MiniMax H3 Hugging Face guide.
08 / Provenance
Sources and verification
Primary sources support model and license facts. Standards sources support terminology.
MiniMax open-source announcement
Supports: Release wording, system architecture and initial implementation status
Verified Aug 25, 2026MiniMaxAI / MiniMax-H3
Supports: Checkpoint families, model components, local output and hosted stages
Verified Aug 25, 2026MiniMax H3 Community License
Supports: Territory, commercial, distribution, output and use restrictions
Verified Aug 25, 2026MiniMax license Q&A
Supports: API distinction, authorization and future territory review
Verified Aug 25, 2026Open Source Definition
Supports: Criteria used to distinguish open-source licensing from weight access
Verified Aug 25, 2026Editorial method. We separate publisher claims from independently worded conclusions, prefer primary sources, and update the status table only when the underlying source changes. This page is informational and is not legal advice.
Published Aug 25, 2026 · Last reviewed Aug 25, 2026