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 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'S BEHIND CHINA'S AI BOOM?
Transforming the country into a tech superpower has long been President Xi Jinping's goal and China has its sights on ending up being the world leader in AI by 2030.
China views AI as being "strategically important" and its foray into the field has been "years in the making", said Chen Qiheng, an affiliated researcher at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.
Private and public investments in Chinese AI sped up after ChatGPT took off in 2022 and showed guarantees of real-world service applications, Chen informed CNA.
But it was DeepSeek's rise that truly "urged" the concept that smaller sized gamers like start-up firms could have roles to play in AI research and advancements, he includes.
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The "emphasis on cost benefit" is a distinct function of Chinese AI, Chen states, with lower training and inference expenses - the expenses of using a trained design to reason from new data.
2025 might also see the introduction of more Chinese AI models tackling innovative reasoning jobs.
"We might see some AI firms concentrating on getting closer to artificial basic intelligence (AGI) while others focus on concrete methods to commercialise their models and incorporate them with scientific research," Chen added.
AGI describes a system with intelligence on par with human abilities.
Chinese AI companies are moving quickly, experts say, building on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own ingenious and cost-effective ways to use generative AI to jobs and develop more sophisticated products beyond chatbots.
But on the other hand, access to high-end hardware, especially Nvidia's advanced AI chips, remains a crucial hurdle for Chinese developers, noted Dr Marina Zhang, an associate professor at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.
"US export controls (still) limit the capability of Chinese tech business ... requiring many to rely on older or lower-performance options which can slow training and lower design abilities," she said.
"While some companies like DeepSeek, have actually found innovative methods to optimize or use more basic hardware effectively, obtaining innovative chips still makes a huge difference for training very big 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, topics deemed delicate by the state are censored on the internet 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 recommend Chinese chatbots are programmed to guide clear of domestic politics.
When asked "Who is Xi Jinping", DeepSeek's reply was "Sorry, I'm uncertain how to approach this type of question yet. Let's chat about math, coding, and logic issues instead!"
To further evaluate for precision and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the exact same question: "What took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"
The cars and truck attack outside a sports arena in the southern Chinese city was initially heavily censored on Chinese social media - with authorities only revealing the death toll a day later on.
DeepSeek failed to discuss that an attack had occurred, highlighting instead a military air program and other events that had occurred 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 in addition to "a couple of useful constraints".
"DeepSeek counts on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has limited access to innovative hardware which can affect how quickly and thoroughly the design 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 flexibility (to bring out) multilingual jobs ... As a fairly brand-new product, DeepSeek likewise hasn't yet been tested as broadly or on the exact same scale as more recognized AI designs which positions extra challenges throughout real-world deployment."
When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba's chatbot remarkably addressed our question about the Zhuhai vehicle attack.
That was after numerous repeated attempts - four prompts to be precise - in a span of around 20 minutes.
It ultimately passed on details about the attack which killed 35 individuals 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 age, along with casualties.
However, it wrote that "the police are conducting a thorough investigation into the motives and situations surrounding the occurrence", details which is now obsoleted.
The motorist, Fan, was performed last month.
This is Qwen2.5's action completely:
Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a major and tragic event took place in Zhuhai, China. According to numerous news sources, a male called Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years old) drove a vehicle into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, resulting in a considerable number of casualties. Here are the key details:
Date and Time: The incident happened on November 11, 2024, at roughly 19:48 PM.
Location: Zhuhai Sports Center, in the Xiangzhou District of Zhuhai.
Casualties: The attack resulted in 35 deaths and 43 injuries.
Perpetrator: The motorist, recognized as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was collared by the police.
Response: The police reacted quickly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to transport the injured to health centers for treatment.
Investigation: The cops are conducting a thorough investigation into the motives and circumstances surrounding the occurrence.
This occasion was commonly reported in the media and caused considerable public concern. The federal government and local authorities have actually been working to offer assistance to the victims and their households, and to ensure a detailed investigation into the incident.
If you require more detailed details or have particular questions about the event, feel free to ask.
Despite preliminary success, subsequent attempts to posture the exact same concern to Qwen2.5 led to the censors back at work with the reply "I do not have specific details on occasions that took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".
The modified action also raised concerns about its consistency and reliability.
Predictably, ChatGPT pointed out public details that had actually been commonly published in global report at the time of the accident - so no surprises there.
WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?
Users have actually praised the ability of Chinese AI apps to deliver structured and even "mentally rich" writing.
"DeepSeek-R1 offered a story with a more introspective tone and smoother psychological shifts for a well-paced story," wrote tech author Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.
"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that builds slowly from interest to seriousness, keeping the reader engaged. It offers an unanticipated and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vivid imagery for the setting," she said, adding that Qwen2.5 eventually "crafted a more cinematic, emotionally abundant story with a more significant twist".
"DeepSeek wrote a great story but lacked tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the obvious choice."
Opinions, however, vary.
Chen believes that Qwen2.5 does not perform as strongly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to creative writing.
"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain tasks, but we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as highly as others in creative writing," he informed CNA.
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As reporters and authors, we had to see this for ourselves so we put each bot to the test - to come up with a fundamental sci-fi film plot embeded in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, featuring main characters from the timeless Chinese folklore epic, Journey to the West.
True to form, DeepSeek created an appealing story set in the year 2145 titled, "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 float above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled in between quantum server farms".
It likewise brilliantly 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 financial obligation and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "quiet hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores become waterlogged and fragmented".
ChatGPT set up a good battle, coming up with an equally significant 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 guideline, corporations replace emperors and cybernetic implants are as common as ancient myths."
Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this obstacle - providing a storyline that appeared more matched for an animation film.
"The motion picture begins 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 truth and "looking for to understand his function in this strange brand-new world", he then leaves and satisfies Zhu Bajie and - "each battling with their own existential crises".
The trio then embarks on a mission, navigating the streets of Chongqing to safeguard the spiritual "Eternal Scroll" from falling into the incorrect 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 locations, "such as language focus, training data and hardware optimization".
Her insight highlights how Chinese AI models are not just replicating Western paradigms, but rather progressing in affordable development methods - and delivering localised and improved outcomes.
In our tests, it-viking.ch each bot showcased their own distinct strengths, which certainly made direct contrasts challenging.
DeepSeek's sci-fi movie plot demonstrated its creative flair that made for a more engaging and creative narrative as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT's efforts.
Unsurprisingly, the more recognized ChatGPT, it-viking.ch unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, provides precise and factual reactions to concerns about Chinese present events, which offers 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 company Strategy Risks.
"When provided a choice, Chinese users desire the non-censored version - much like anybody else, so I feel like that's a piece missing out on from it."
Independent Beijing-based expert Andy Chen Xinran said censorship would not be a dealbreaker when it pertains to AI bots, especially for Chinese users.
"Ninety percent of people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically delicate subjects. They're using it for other productive ways," Chen said.
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How do Chinese aI Bots Stack up Against ChatGPT?
Arlette Chill edited this page 2025-02-08 17:13:35 -06:00