Chinese companies developing ChatGPT-like technology.

The Global Buzz around Microsoft-Backed OpenAI’s ChatGPT Reaches China

On April 10, Reuters reported on the global buzz surrounding Microsoft-backed OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which has now spread to China. This news has upped the stocks in artificial intelligence (AI) related companies in China and prompted numerous local companies to announce rival projects. Giant firms such as Baidu and Alibaba, alongside smaller start-ups, have been working on AI projects for several years.

Chatbots in China: Social Interactions vs Professional Tasks

In China, chatbots mostly focus on social interactions, whereas ChatGPT learns from vast amounts of data on how to answer prompts by users in a human-like manner, performing better at more professional tasks such as programming and essay writing.

Chinese Tech Companies with Announcements on AI Technology

• SENSETIME: On April 10, the Chinese AI firm, SenseTime, unveiled a slew of new AI-powered products, including a chatbot and image generator, based off its AI model SenseNova. The company has not disclosed any plans for a product rollout.
• BAIDU: On March 16, Baidu, Inc. unveiled its much-anticipated AI-powered chatbot, known as Ernie Bot. It is currently available to a limited number of users who apply for access codes. Reuters reported that the chatbot has a good command of the Chinese language but avoids answering some political questions. Baidu plans to revolutionize its search engine, the most dominant in China, by using Ernie Bot to increase efficiency in cloud computing, smart cars, household appliances, and other mainstream businesses. On March 27, the company shared pre-recorded videos of Ernie that showed the bot summarizing financial statements and producing PowerPoint presentations.
• ALIBABA: On February 8, Alibaba Group reported that it was conducting internal testing for a ChatGPT-style tool. On April 7, Chinese media reported that Alibaba was seeking companies to test its Tongyi Qianwen AI chatbot. A formal launch is expected at an Alibaba Cloud event on April 11.
• TENCENT: In February, Tencent Holdings set up a development team to work on a ChatGPT-like chatbot to be called “HunyuanAide”. When asked for comment, Tencent reiterated its February 9 statement that it is conducting research on ChatGPT-tool technology.
• FUDAN UNIVERSITY TEAM: A team from China’s Fudan University launched a ChatGPT-like chatbot that they called MOSS on February 20. The platform, however, crashed hours after its launch due to a surge in traffic.
• JD.COM: On February 10, E-commerce company JD.Com said it plans to launch a product similar to ChatGPT that it said would be called ChatJD and will be aimed at serving other businesses.
• CHINA TELECOM: China Telecom Corp is developing an industrial version of ChatGPT for telecommunications, which will use AI in some customer service functions, local Chinese media reported on February 18.
• NETEASE: Gaming firm NetEase plans to deploy large language models technology to serve its education business, a source familiar with the company told Reuters on February 8.
• 360 SECURITY TECHNOLOGY INC: On February 8, 360 Security Technology Inc said it possessed language model technology, but it could not give a clear indication of when it would launch any related products.
• KUAISHOU TECHNOLOGY: Short video app Kuaishou Technology is conducting research on large language models, which it will use to improve its products such as AI customer service, the government-backed the Paper reported on February 9.
• INSPUR ELECTRONIC INFORMATION INDUSTRY: Inspur Electronic Information Industry said on its investor relations website that it has long invested in AI-Generated Content (AIGC) from arithmetic, algorithms to the application of the technology.
• KUNLUN TECH: Beijing-based mobile games firm Kunlun Tech said it planned to launch a Chinese version of ChatGPT this year whose code will be open source. In a separate statement, the company said it will embed ChatGPT into its Norway-based web browser, Opera.

It’s apparent that the arrival of ChatGPT has upped the ante for the development and deployment of AI language models. With numerous Chinese companies joining the fray in developing similar AI chatbots, this trend is a clear indicator of the exponential growth and development of the AI market in China.

Reporting by Albee Zhang and Brenda Goh, additional reporting by David Kirton and Laura Lin; Editing by Anne Marie Roantree and Kim Coghill.