The TTFT Dilemma: Why Self-Hosted Open-Weight Models Aren't Always Claude's Speed Solution

Claude's performance lag stems primarily from TTFT (time to first token) delays rather than decode speed, making developers perceive sluggishness despite reasonable streaming rates. While self-hosted open-weight models promise dramatically faster TTFT, shared GPU infrastructure among teams negates much of this advantage, suggesting the infrastructure complexity may not justify switching from Claude for many organizations.