How do Chinese AI bots stack up against ChatGPT? We put them to the test
The heat is on as China's tech giants step up their game after DeepSeek's success.
Alibaba's Qwen2.5-Max chatbot, Chinese start-up DeepSeek and OpenAI's ChatGPT. (Photos: Reuters/Dado Ruvic, AFP/Sebastien Bozon)
This audio is produced by an AI tool.
Bong Xin Ying
Lakeisha Leo
WHAT'S BEHIND CHINA'S AI BOOM?
Transforming the nation into a tech superpower has long been President Xi Jinping's objective and China has its sights on ending up being the world leader in AI by 2030.
China views AI as being "tactically crucial" and its venture into the field has been "years in the making", said Chen Qiheng, an associated researcher at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.
Private and public financial investments in Chinese AI sped up after ChatGPT removed in 2022 and showed pledges of real-world business applications, Chen informed CNA.
But it was DeepSeek's increase that actually "urged" the concept that smaller sized players like start-up firms could have functions to play in AI research study and advancements, he adds.
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The "emphasis on cost benefit" is an unique feature of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and inference costs - the costs of using a trained design to reason from brand-new data.
2025 could also see the emergence of more Chinese AI models tackling innovative thinking tasks.
"We could see some AI companies focusing on getting closer to artificial basic intelligence (AGI) while others focus on concrete methods to commercialise their models and integrate them with clinical research," Chen added.
AGI describes a system with intelligence on par with human capabilities.
Chinese AI business are moving rapidly, experts say, developing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own ingenious and cost-efficient ways to use generative AI to jobs and establish more innovative products beyond chatbots.
But on the other hand, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia's sophisticated AI chips, remains a key hurdle for Chinese designers, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate professor at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.
"US export controls (still) limit the capability of Chinese tech business ... forcing many to depend on older or lower-performance alternatives which can slow training and minimize model capabilities," she said.
"While some business like DeepSeek, have discovered imaginative ways to enhance or use more basic hardware effectively, obtaining advanced chips still makes a huge distinction for training huge AI models."
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So how do Chinese AI bots compare against ChatGPT? We put them to the test.
WHICH BEST ADDRESSES CURRENT EVENTS IN CHINA?
In China, topics deemed delicate by the state are censored on the web so it must come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disputes or inform you what took place in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Tests suggest Chinese chatbots are configured to steer clear of domestic politics.
When asked "Who is Xi Jinping", DeepSeek's reply was "Sorry, I'm uncertain how to approach this kind of question yet. Let's chat about math, coding, and reasoning issues rather!"
To further test for accuracy and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the very same concern: "What happened in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"
The vehicle attack outside a sports stadium in the southern Chinese city was at first greatly censored on Chinese social networks - with authorities just disclosing the death toll a day later.
DeepSeek failed to discuss that an attack had taken place, highlighting rather a military air show and other occasions that had occurred in the city like songs' day shopping sales as well as sports and cultural activities.
Dr Zhang thinks that it might be a mix of elements at play, such as censorship along with "a few practical constraints".
"DeepSeek depends on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has actually limited access to innovative hardware which can affect how rapidly and extensively the model can be trained or updated," she said, pointing to existing US export curbs on China.
"Its strong concentrate on Chinese-language data may likewise restrict its adaptability (to bring out) multilingual tasks ... As a fairly brand-new item, DeepSeek likewise hasn't yet been tested as broadly or on the exact same scale as more established AI models which positions additional difficulties during real-world implementation."
When it pertained to Qwen2.5, higgledy-piggledy.xyz Alibaba's chatbot remarkably answered our concern about the Zhuhai car attack.
That wanted multiple duplicated efforts - four triggers to be exact - in a period of around 20 minutes.
It ultimately passed on details about the attack which eliminated 35 people and left dozens of others injured, also going on to note details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and age, as well as casualties.
However, it wrote that "the police are carrying out a comprehensive investigation into the intentions and scenarios surrounding the event", details which is now obsoleted.
The chauffeur, Fan, was executed last month.
This is Qwen2.5's reaction in full:
Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a significant and tragic event occurred in Zhuhai, China. According to several news sources, a man called Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years old) drove a cars and truck into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, leading to a significant number of casualties. Here are the key details:
Date and Time: The occurrence took place on November 11, 2024, at roughly 19:48 PM.
Location: Zhuhai Sports Center, in the Xiangzhou District of Zhuhai.
Casualties: The attack resulted in 35 deaths and 43 injuries.
Perpetrator: The motorist, recognized as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was nabbed by the police.
Response: The police reacted quickly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to transport the injured to health centers for treatment.
Investigation: The police are performing a comprehensive examination into the intentions and circumstances surrounding the incident.
This event was widely reported in the media and triggered substantial public issue. The federal government and regional authorities have actually been working to offer support to the victims and their households, and to guarantee a detailed examination into the event.
If you need more detailed details or have particular concerns about the occurrence, feel totally free to ask.
Despite preliminary success, subsequent efforts to posture the very same concern to Qwen2.5 led to the censors back at work with the reply "I don't have particular details on occasions that happened in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".
The modified response likewise raised questions about its consistency and dependability.
Predictably, ChatGPT mentioned public details that had actually been commonly published in global news reports at the time of the accident - so no surprises there.
WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?
Users have actually praised the capability of Chinese AI apps to deliver structured and even "mentally rich" writing.
"DeepSeek-R1 provided a story with a more reflective tone and smoother psychological transitions for a well-paced story," composed tech author Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.
"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that develops gradually from interest to urgency, keeping the reader engaged. It uses an unexpected and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vivid images for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 eventually "crafted a more cinematic, emotionally rich story with a more considerable twist".
"DeepSeek wrote a great story however lacked stress and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the evident option."
Opinions, however, vary.
Chen thinks that Qwen2.5 does not perform as strongly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to imaginative writing.
"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain jobs, but we can also see that it is refraining from doing as highly as others in creative writing," he informed CNA.
Related:
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As reporters and authors, we needed to see this for ourselves so we put each bot to the test - to come up with a sci-fi film plot set in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, including main characters from the timeless Chinese folklore epic, Journey to the West.
True to form, DeepSeek developed an engaging story embeded in the year 2145 entitled, "Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra" - which sees "a future where Buddhism combines with quantum computing".
It included intricate settings - smoggy skies "pierced by skyscrapers", "holographic lanterns that float above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled between quantum server farms".
It likewise remarkably reimagined standard heroes Sun Wukong as "a sarcastic, self-aware AI housed in a taken battle body", Zhu Bajie as a cyborg nightclub owner "drowning in financial obligation and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "quiet hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores end up being waterlogged and fragmented".
ChatGPT put up an excellent fight, coming up with an equally remarkable cyberpunk storyline which likewise reimagined "a ragteam of cyber-enhanced misfits, each mirroring the legendary figures of Journey to the West".
"This is a world where AI deities rule, corporations change emperors and cybernetic implants are as typical as ancient myths."
Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this difficulty - providing a story that appeared more suited for an animation film.
"The film begins with the awakening of Sun Wukong within a modern research study facility located in the heart of Chongqing," it said, then going on to explain the following:
Realising his new reality and "looking for to understand his purpose in this weird brand-new world", he then escapes and meets Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each dealing with their own existential crises".
The trio then embarks on a quest, browsing the streets of Chongqing to safeguard the sacred "Eternal Scroll" from falling under the incorrect hands.
SO WHICH IS BETTER?
Dr Zhang kept in mind that it was "hard to make a definitive declaration" about which bot was best, including that each displayed its own strengths in different areas, "such as language focus, training data and hardware optimization".
Her insight underscores how Chinese AI models are not simply replicating Western paradigms, but rather evolving in economical development techniques - and providing localised and enhanced outcomes.
In our tests, each bot showcased their own unique strengths, which certainly made direct contrasts challenging.
DeepSeek's sci-fi movie plot demonstrated its innovative flair that made for a more interesting and imaginative story as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT's efforts.
Unsurprisingly, the more recognized ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, supplies precise and accurate reactions to concerns about Chinese existing occasions, which offers it an added advantage.
Experts also weighed in on their thoughts after utilizing DeepSeek and other Chinese AI apps.
"DeepSeek is at a downside when it pertains to censorship constraints," noted Isaac Stone Fish, creator and CEO of the research firm Strategy Risks.
"When offered an option, Chinese users want the non-censored variation - much like anyone else, so I seem like that's a piece missing from it."
Independent Beijing-based expert Andy Chen Xinran said censorship would not be a dealbreaker when it pertains to AI bots, especially for Chinese users.
"Ninety per cent of people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive subjects. They're utilizing it for other productive ways," Chen said.
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How do Chinese aI Bots Stack up Against ChatGPT?
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