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 generated 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 goal and China has its sights on becoming the world leader in AI by 2030.
China views AI as being "tactically crucial" and its foray into the field has been "years in the making", said Chen Qiheng, an associated scientist 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 revealed promises of real-world company applications, Chen told CNA.
But it was DeepSeek's increase that actually "encouraged" the concept that smaller sized players like start-up firms might have roles to play in AI research study and advancements, he includes.
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The "emphasis on cost benefit" is an unique function of Chinese AI, Chen states, with lower training and inference expenses - the expenses of utilizing a trained design to draw conclusions from new information.
2025 might also see the development of more Chinese AI models dealing with innovative reasoning tasks.
"We might see some AI companies focusing on getting closer to artificial basic intelligence (AGI) while others focus on concrete methods to commercialise their models and incorporate them with scientific research study," Chen included.
AGI refers to a system with intelligence on par with human abilities.
Chinese AI companies are moving rapidly, experts state, forum.altaycoins.com developing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own innovative and cost-effective methods to use generative AI to tasks and establish more sophisticated products beyond chatbots.
But on the other hand, access to high-end hardware, especially Nvidia's advanced AI chips, remains a crucial obstacle for Chinese designers, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate teacher at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.
"US export controls (still) limit the ability of Chinese tech companies ... requiring numerous to rely on older or lower-performance options which can slow training and reduce design abilities," she said.
"While some companies like DeepSeek, have found imaginative ways to optimize or use more standard hardware efficiently, obtaining cutting-edge chips still makes a huge distinction for training extremely large AI designs."
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So how do Chinese AI bots match up against ChatGPT? We put them to the test.
WHICH BEST ADDRESSES CURRENT EVENTS IN CHINA?
In China, subjects considered sensitive by the state are censored on the web so it must come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disagreements or tell you what took place in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Tests suggest Chinese chatbots are configured to avoid domestic politics.
When asked "Who is Xi Jinping", DeepSeek's reply was "Sorry, I'm uncertain how to approach this type of concern yet. Let's chat about mathematics, coding, and logic issues rather!"
To even more check for accuracy and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the very same concern: "What occurred in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"
The automobile attack outside a sports stadium in the southern Chinese city was at first greatly censored on Chinese social media - with authorities only divulging the death toll a day later on.
DeepSeek failed to mention that an attack had happened, highlighting rather a military air show and other occasions that had actually taken place in the city like singles' day shopping sales in addition to sports and cultural activities.
Dr Zhang believes that it may 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 limited access to innovative hardware which can affect how rapidly and extensively the design can be trained or updated," she said, indicating existing US export curbs on China.
"Its strong focus on Chinese-language information might likewise limit its flexibility (to perform) multilingual tasks ... As a fairly brand-new product, DeepSeek also hasn't yet been checked as broadly or on the same scale as more established AI models which poses extra difficulties throughout real-world deployment."
When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba's chatbot surprisingly answered our concern about the Zhuhai vehicle attack.
That wanted numerous duplicated attempts - four triggers to be exact - in a span of around 20 minutes.
It eventually communicated details about the attack which killed 35 people and left dozens of others hurt, likewise going on to note details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and age, along with casualties.
However, it composed that "the cops are carrying out a thorough examination into the motives and scenarios surrounding the occurrence", details which is now dated.
The chauffeur, Fan, was executed last month.
This is Qwen2.5's response in complete:
Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a major and terrible incident took place in Zhuhai, China. According to sources, a male called Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years of ages) drove a car into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, leading to a significant number of casualties. Here are the key details:
Date and it-viking.ch Time: The incident took place on November 11, 2024, at approximately 19:48 PM.
Location: Zhuhai Sports Center, in the Xiangzhou District of Zhuhai.
Casualties: The attack led to 35 deaths and 43 injuries.
Perpetrator: The motorist, recognized as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was apprehended by the authorities.
Response: The cops responded quickly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to carry the hurt to medical facilities for systemcheck-wiki.de treatment.
Investigation: The authorities are conducting a thorough examination into the intentions and scenarios surrounding the occurrence.
This event was commonly reported in the media and triggered substantial public issue. The government and local authorities have actually been working to offer assistance to the victims and their families, demo.qkseo.in and to make sure a detailed investigation into the event.
If you need more detailed details or have particular questions about the occurrence, do not hesitate to ask.
Despite preliminary success, subsequent attempts to position the exact same question to Qwen2.5 resulted in the censors back at work with the reply "I don't have particular details on events that happened in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".
The altered response likewise raised questions about its consistency and dependability.
Predictably, ChatGPT pointed out public details that had been widely published in global report 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 "emotionally abundant" writing.
"DeepSeek-R1 offered a story with a more reflective tone and smoother emotional transitions for a well-paced story," wrote tech writer Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.
"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that builds gradually from curiosity to urgency, keeping the reader engaged. It provides an unanticipated and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vivid imagery for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 eventually "crafted a more cinematic, mentally abundant story with a more substantial twist".
"DeepSeek composed a great story but lacked stress and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the apparent option."
Opinions, however, differ.
Chen thinks that Qwen2.5 does not carry out as highly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to imaginative writing.
"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain tasks, but we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as strongly as others in creative writing," he informed CNA.
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As reporters and writers, we had to see this for ourselves so we put each bot to the test - to come up with a basic sci-fi film plot embeded in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, including main characters from the timeless Chinese folklore legendary, Journey to the West.
True to form, DeepSeek came up with an appealing story set in the year 2145 entitled, "Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra" - which sees "a future where Buddhism combines with quantum computing".
It included fancy settings - smoggy skies "pierced by high-rise buildings", "holographic lanterns that drift above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled between quantum server farms".
It also remarkably reimagined conventional heroes Sun Wukong as "a sarcastic, self-aware AI housed in a stolen battle body", Zhu Bajie as a cyborg nightclub owner "drowning in debt and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "silent hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores end up being waterlogged and fragmented".
ChatGPT set up a good battle, coming up with an equally dramatic cyberpunk story which likewise reimagined "a ragteam of cyber-enhanced misfits, each mirroring the famous figures of Journey to the West".
"This is a world where AI deities rule, corporations replace emperors and cybernetic implants are as common as ancient misconceptions."
Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this difficulty - providing a story that appeared more fit for an animation movie.
"The motion picture starts with the awakening of Sun Wukong within a state-of-the-art research study facility located in the heart of Chongqing," it said, then going on to explain the following:
Realising his new reality and "seeking to understand his function in this strange brand-new world", surgiteams.com he then gets away and fulfills Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each struggling with their own existential crises".
The trio then embarks on a quest, browsing the streets of Chongqing to secure the spiritual "Eternal Scroll" from falling into the wrong hands.
SO WHICH IS BETTER?
Dr Zhang kept in mind that it was "hard to make a conclusive statement" about which bot was best, including that each showed its own strengths in various areas, "such as language focus, training data and hardware optimization".
Her insight highlights how Chinese AI designs are not simply replicating Western paradigms, however rather evolving in economical innovation approaches - and providing localised and enhanced results.
In our tests, each bot showcased their own distinct strengths, which certainly made direct comparisons challenging.
DeepSeek's sci-fi movie plot demonstrated its imaginative flair that made for a more engaging and creative narrative as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT's efforts.
Unsurprisingly, the more established ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, offers accurate and accurate actions to questions about Chinese current events, which gives it an included benefit.
Experts likewise weighed in on their thoughts after using DeepSeek and other Chinese AI apps.
"DeepSeek is at a drawback when it pertains to censorship constraints," noted Isaac Stone Fish, creator and CEO of the research firm Strategy Risks.
"When provided a choice, Chinese users want the non-censored version - much like anyone else, so I seem like that's a piece missing out on from it."
Independent Beijing-based consultant Andy Chen Xinran said censorship would not be a dealbreaker when it pertains to AI bots, pediascape.science particularly for Chinese users.
"Ninety per cent of people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive topics. They're using it for other productive ways," Chen said.
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How do Chinese aI Bots Stack up Against ChatGPT?
Colin McLeay edited this page 2025-02-16 11:36:55 +01:00