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Baidu, the Google in Mandarin, has launched and made available to the public Ernie Bot, the answer to ChatGpt, marking a step forward for the Chinese technology sector as it aims to profit from the potential of artificial intelligence. Ernie Bot, unveiled in March in limited form, is the first home AI app to be fully available in China, but not overseas. “We are thrilled to be able to share that the ERNIE Bot is now fully ready for the public as of August 31st,” Baidu said in a statement.
Beijing introduced new rules for AI developers in August, aimed at helping them keep pace with rival giants such as Microsoft and OpenAi, but still keeping a tight grip on online information. “In addition to Ernie Bot, Baidu will launch a suite of new native AI apps that will enable users to fully experience the four core capabilities of generative AI: understanding, generation, reasoning, and memory,” the statement continues. .
Rapid development thanks to rapid feedback
By making Ernie Bot available, Baidu will be able to garner massive feedback to improve the app at a rapid pace, said company chief Robin Li. Generative AI apps are tuned to large amounts of data and their interactions with users so that they can answer questions, including complex ones, in human-like language.
The success of US-based OpenAI’s ChatGPT (banned in China) has sparked a rush to develop rival apps, including image and video generators, but also widespread alarm over potential abuse and misinformation. According to recent guidelines, China’s generative AI apps must “adhere to the core values of socialism” and refrain from threatening national security and promoting terrorism, violence or “ethnic hatred”, as well as preventing or restricting “information false and harmful”. Baidu is among the largest Chinese technology companies, but has faced competition from other domestic champions such as Tencent, venturing into various industries such as cloud computing and autonomous driving.