Microsoft's MAI-Image-2.6 & MAI-Image-2.6-Flash Models Hit General Availability in Microsoft Foundry

Microsoft has officially made MAI-Image-2.6 and MAI-Image-2.6-Flash generally available in Microsoft Foundry. The new models focus on precise editing, consistent visuals, and faster creative workflows, with pricing options for different workloads.

Microsoft MAI-Image-2.6 brings more control to AI image generation

One of the major highlights is the multi-reference editing, which lets MAI-Image-2.6 use up to five reference images in a single editing workflow. Teams can combine product photos, characters, and brand assets to maintain visual consistency without describing every detail from scratch.

Microsoft has also added web grounding through Bing integration. This helps the models use relevant real-world context when generating images that require recent or specific information. However, Microsoft still recommends reviewing outputs when factual accuracy, branding, or editorial standards matter. The models also support dynamic aspect ratios and image output up to 1.5K resolution. These controls give creative teams more flexibility when adapting assets for different placements and campaigns.

MAI-Image-2.6-Flash targets faster and cheaper workflows

Microsoft positions MAI-Image-2.6 for complex edits, text rendering, and polished campaign assets. Meanwhile, MAI-Image-2.6-Flash caters to rapid iterations, interactive creative tools, personalization, and high-volume generation.

Pricing also separates the two models. MAI-Image-2.6 starts at $5 per million text-input tokens, $8 per million image-input tokens, and $38 per million image-output tokens. Flash starts at $1.75, $2.50, and $19 per million tokens, respectively.

Microsoft says Minute, the company behind Sports Illustrated’s publishing business, has been testing the models for creative workflows. The company highlighted their visual quality, composition, and targeted editing potential.

Adobe Firefly integration is coming soon

Microsoft also confirmed that MAI-Image-2.6 will soon arrive in Adobe Firefly. This will bring the model into an established creative platform and give creators another option for generating and refining images. It is worth noting that developers can start with Microsoft’s image-generation quick start or explore the multi-reference editing sample notebook to test the capabilities.