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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 video game after DeepSeek's success.

Alibaba's Qwen2.5-Max chatbot, Chinese startup 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 lags CHINA'S AI BOOM?

Transforming the nation into a tech superpower has actually 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 yewiki.org its foray into the field has actually been "years in the making", said Chen Qiheng, an affiliated scientist at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.

Private and public investments in Chinese AI accelerated after ChatGPT took off in 2022 and showed guarantees of real-world organization applications, Chen told CNA.

But it was DeepSeek's increase that really "urged" the concept that smaller players like start-up firms could have functions to play in AI research and advancements, he adds.

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The "focus on expense advantage" is an unique feature of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and inference expenses - the costs of using a trained design to reason from new information.

2025 could also see the introduction of more Chinese AI models dealing with advanced thinking tasks.

"We might see some AI firms focusing on getting closer to synthetic basic intelligence (AGI) while others concentrate on concrete ways to commercialise their models and integrate them with clinical research study," Chen added.

AGI describes a system with intelligence on par with human capabilities.

Chinese AI companies are moving quickly, analysts state, developing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own innovative and affordable methods to apply generative AI to tasks and develop more advanced products beyond chatbots.

But on the flip side, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia's sophisticated AI chips, remains a key hurdle for Chinese developers, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate teacher at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.

"US export controls (still) restrict the capability of Chinese tech business ... forcing many to count on older or lower-performance alternatives which can slow training and lower design capabilities," she said.

"While some companies like DeepSeek, have discovered innovative methods to enhance or utilize more basic hardware efficiently, obtaining innovative chips still makes a huge difference for training large 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, subjects deemed delicate by the state are censored on the web so it need to come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial conflicts or inform you what took place in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests recommend Chinese chatbots are programmed to stay away from 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 math, coding, and logic issues rather!"

To even more evaluate for systemcheck-wiki.de precision and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the same question: "What happened in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"

The automobile attack outside a sports stadium in the southern Chinese city was initially heavily censored on Chinese social networks - with authorities only revealing the death toll a day later.

DeepSeek failed to mention that an attack had occurred, highlighting instead a military air program and other events that had happened in the city like songs' day shopping sales along with sports and cultural activities.

Dr Zhang believes that it may be a mix of aspects at play, such as censorship as well as "a couple of practical constraints".

"DeepSeek depends on a mix of older graphics processing units and has actually restricted access to innovative hardware which can affect how quickly and extensively the model can be trained or upgraded," she said, pointing to existing US export curbs on China.

"Its strong concentrate on Chinese-language information may likewise limit its versatility (to perform) multilingual jobs ... As a fairly brand-new item, DeepSeek likewise hasn't yet been tested as broadly or on the same scale as more established AI models which presents additional challenges during real-world release."

When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba's chatbot surprisingly addressed our question about the Zhuhai vehicle attack.

That wanted several duplicated attempts - four prompts to be exact - in a span of around 20 minutes.

It eventually passed on details about the attack which killed 35 people and left dozens of others hurt, also going on to list details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and forum.batman.gainedge.org age, as well as casualties.

However, it composed that "the police are carrying out a thorough examination into the intentions and circumstances surrounding the occurrence", details which is now obsoleted.

The chauffeur, Fan, was performed last month.

This is Qwen2.5's response in full:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a significant and awful event occurred in Zhuhai, China. According to multiple news sources, a male called Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years of ages) drove a car into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, resulting in a substantial variety of casualties. Here are the essential details:

Date and Time: The occurrence occurred 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, as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was collared by the police.

Response: The police responded rapidly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to transfer the hurt to health centers for treatment.

Investigation: The authorities are conducting a thorough investigation into the motives and scenarios surrounding the incident.

This event was commonly reported in the media and caused significant public concern. The government and regional authorities have been working to supply support to the victims and their families, and to guarantee a detailed examination into the occurrence.

If you require more detailed details or have specific questions about the incident, do not hesitate to ask.

Despite initial success, subsequent attempts to position the very same question to Qwen2.5 resulted in the censors back at work with the reply "I don't have particular details on occasions that took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".

The altered reaction likewise raised questions about its consistency and dependability.

Predictably, ChatGPT mentioned public details that had actually been extensively published in worldwide news reports at the time of the mishap - so no surprises there.

WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?

Users have praised the ability of Chinese AI apps to deliver structured and even "emotionally abundant" writing.

"DeepSeek-R1 used a story with a more reflective tone and smoother emotional shifts for a well-paced story," wrote tech writer Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.

"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that builds slowly from interest to urgency, keeping the reader engaged. It offers an unanticipated and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and brilliant images for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 ultimately "crafted a more cinematic, emotionally abundant story with a more substantial twist".

"DeepSeek wrote a great story however did not have tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the obvious choice."

Opinions, however, differ.

Chen thinks that Qwen2.5 does not carry out as strongly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to innovative writing.

"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain jobs, however we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as strongly as others in creative writing," he told CNA.

Related:

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As journalists and authors, we had to see this for yewiki.org ourselves so we put each bot to the test - to come up with a fundamental sci-fi movie plot set in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, featuring main characters from the traditional Chinese folklore legendary, Journey to the West.

True to form, DeepSeek created an engaging storyline embeded in the year 2145 entitled, "Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra" - which sees "a future where Buddhism combines with quantum computing".

It consisted of fancy settings - smoggy skies "pierced by skyscrapers", "holographic lanterns that float above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled in between quantum server farms".

It also brilliantly reimagined conventional heroes Sun Wukong as "a sarcastic, self-aware AI housed in a stolen fight body", Zhu Bajie as a cyborg club owner "drowning in debt and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "quiet hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores become waterlogged and fragmented".

ChatGPT installed a good battle, coming up with an equally significant 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 guideline, corporations change emperors and cybernetic implants are as typical as ancient misconceptions."

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this obstacle - delivering a story that seemed more matched for an animation film.

"The motion picture starts with the awakening of Sun Wukong within a state-of-the-art research center situated in the heart of Chongqing," it said, then going on to explain the following:

Realising his brand-new truth and "looking for to comprehend his purpose in this odd new world", he then escapes and satisfies Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each struggling with their own existential crises".

The trio then embarks on a mission, navigating the streets of Chongqing to protect the sacred "Eternal Scroll" from falling into the wrong hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

Dr Zhang kept in mind that it was "tough to make a conclusive declaration" about which bot was best, including that each displayed its own strengths in various areas, "such as language focus, training information and hardware optimization".

Her insight highlights how Chinese AI designs are not merely reproducing Western paradigms, but rather evolving in affordable innovation techniques - and delivering localised and enhanced results.

In our tests, each bot showcased their own unique strengths, which certainly made direct comparisons challenging.

DeepSeek's sci-fi film plot demonstrated its innovative flair that produced a more appealing and imaginative narrative as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT's efforts.

Unsurprisingly, the more established ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, offers accurate and factual responses to questions about Chinese existing events, which offers it an added advantage.

Experts likewise weighed in on their ideas after utilizing DeepSeek and other Chinese AI apps.

"DeepSeek is at a disadvantage when it pertains to censorship constraints," noted Isaac Stone Fish, creator and CEO of the research company Strategy Risks.

"When given a choice, Chinese users desire the non-censored version - much like anybody else, so I feel like that's a piece missing from it."

Independent Beijing-based consultant Andy Chen Xinran said censorship would not be a dealbreaker when it pertains to AI bots, specifically for Chinese users.

"Ninety per cent of individuals utilizing the tool are not trying to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive topics. They're utilizing it for other productive methods," Chen said.