Baidu’s “Ernie” AI didn’t shine at its debut, but it’s far from the only artificial intelligence brewing in China.
Chinese companies are positioning themselves in the race for technological leadership in artificial intelligence (AI). The current hype surrounding the ChatGPT software prompted a number of Chinese companies to launch similar programs. While some want to become independent from Microsoft, the main shareholder of ChatGPT developer OpenAI, others need AI specially tailored to their needs.
China recently enacted rules for companies with AI systems. These must be in line with the ideas of the People’s Republic. Failure to comply with the rules will result in fines. But who is currently tinkering with the corresponding systems? An overview.
Alibaba: The Chinese tech giant and Amazon rival is tinkering with the AI language model “Tongyi Qianwen”, which will be integrated into all of the company’s apps in the near future. The software will initially be integrated into the company’s own messaging app DingTalk and the language assistant Tmall Genie.
Sensetime: The AI startup has a number of new AI-powered products in the pipeline, including a chatbot and image generator based on the AI model “SenseNova” based. The company did not provide details on plans for launching the products.
Baidu: The Chinese Google rival brings “Ernie” at the start. Baidu has been working on this technology since 2019. CEO Robin Li admits that Ernie is not yet perfect and that ChatGPT has raised the bar again with the new version. The Chinese government emphasizes the potential of this technology and signals that it will give developers great freedom. However, the AI content would have to be in line with the country’s basic socialist values.
Tencent: According to insiders, the world‘s largest video game provider is joining “Hunyuan Aide” into the ring. The group has put together a development team for this purpose.
Fudan University: Developers from China’s Fudan University have a chatbot by the name “MOSS” developed. However, the platform crashed a few hours after launch due to a sharp spike in traffic. According to the team, it is a very immature model that still has a long way to go before it reaches the level of ChatGPT.
JD.com: The Chinese online retailer participates “ChatJD” in the race for technological leadership in AI.
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China Telecom: According to Chinese media reports, the communications equipment and service provider is developing one industrial version of ChatGPT for telecommunications, which the AI will use in some customer service functions.
According to insiders, the video game provider Netease wants to improve its educational software with the help of AI properties. Cybersecurity specialist 360 Security Technology is experimenting with ChatGPT-like technology, but has not yet announced a roadmap for a commercial launch. Kuahishou Technology is also keeping a low profile. The only thing that is certain is that the state-supported short video platform is researching, among other things, how it can improve customer service with the help of AI.
Kunlun Tech, the Chinese video game developer plans to hold an event on April 17th where the public can test its ChatGPT-like product. The company had previously announced that the program code would be freely accessible (“open source”). In addition, ChatGPT is to be built into the “Opera” browser, in whose Norwegian developer Kunlun took over the majority in 2020.
(Reuters/bagre)