How do Chinese aI Bots Stack up Against ChatGPT?

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 start-up DeepSeek and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. (Photos: Reuters/Dado Ruvic, AFP/Sebastien Bozon)

This audio is created by an AI tool.

Bong Xin Ying

Lakeisha Leo

WHAT lags CHINA’S AI BOOM?

Transforming the country into a tech superpower has long been President Xi Jinping’s objective and China has its sights on becoming the world leader in AI by 2030.

China views AI as being « strategically important » and its venture into the field has been « years in the making », said Chen Qiheng, an associated researcher at the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis.

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

But it was DeepSeek’s rise that truly « urged » the idea that smaller gamers like start-up firms might have roles to play in AI research study and advancements, he includes.

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The « focus on cost advantage » is a distinct feature of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and reasoning costs – the expenses of utilizing a trained model to reason from new information.

2025 might likewise see the emergence of more Chinese AI designs dealing with innovative thinking tasks.

« We might see some AI firms concentrating on getting closer to artificial basic intelligence (AGI) while others focus on concrete methods to commercialise their designs and incorporate them with scientific research, » .

AGI refers to a system with intelligence on par with human abilities.

Chinese AI companies are moving rapidly, disgaeawiki.info analysts say, building on DeepSeek’s momentum to come up with their own innovative and economical methods to use generative AI to tasks and develop advanced 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, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate teacher at University of Technology Sydney’s (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.

« US export controls (still) limit the ability of Chinese tech companies … forcing many to rely on older or lower-performance alternatives which can slow training and lower model abilities, » she said.

« While some business like DeepSeek, have found innovative ways to optimize or use more standard hardware effectively, obtaining advanced chips still makes a big distinction for training huge 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 sensitive by the state are censored on the internet so it must come as no surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disagreements or tell you what happened in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests suggest Chinese chatbots are set 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 problems instead! »

To further evaluate for precision and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the same question: « What took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024? »

The automobile attack outside a sports stadium in the southern Chinese city was at first heavily censored on Chinese social media – with authorities just revealing the death toll a day later on.

DeepSeek failed to point out that an attack had actually taken location, highlighting rather a military air program and other occasions that had actually occurred in the city like songs’ day shopping sales along with sports and cultural activities.

Dr Zhang believes that it might be a mix of aspects at play, such as censorship as well as « a couple of useful constraints ».

« DeepSeek relies on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has limited access to innovative hardware which can impact how quickly and thoroughly the model can be trained or updated, » she said, pointing to existing US export curbs on China.

« Its strong focus on Chinese-language information may likewise limit its versatility (to carry out) multilingual tasks … As a fairly new item, DeepSeek likewise hasn’t yet been checked as broadly or on the exact same scale as more recognized AI designs which poses additional difficulties during real-world deployment. »

When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba’s chatbot surprisingly addressed our concern about the Zhuhai cars and truck attack.

That was after several duplicated attempts – 4 triggers to be precise – in a period of around 20 minutes.

It eventually passed on details about the attack which killed 35 individuals and left lots of others injured, likewise going on to list details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and age, along with casualties.

However, it composed that « the police are conducting a comprehensive investigation into the intentions and circumstances surrounding the occurrence », details which is now dated.

The driver, Fan, was performed last month.

This is Qwen2.5’s action in full:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a major and terrible incident occurred in Zhuhai, China. According to numerous news sources, a male called Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years old) drove a cars and truck into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, leading to a considerable variety of casualties. Here are the essential details:

Date and Time: The event occurred on November 11, 2024, at around 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, identified as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was apprehended by the police.

Response: The cops responded quickly to the scene, and emergency services worked to carry the injured to hospitals for yewiki.org treatment.

Investigation: bytes-the-dust.com The authorities are performing a thorough investigation into the motives and scenarios surrounding the occurrence.

This occasion was commonly reported in the media and triggered substantial public concern. The government and regional authorities have actually been working to offer assistance to the victims and their families, and to guarantee a detailed investigation into the incident.

If you require more detailed details or have particular questions about the incident, feel free to ask.

Despite initial success, subsequent efforts to present the very same question to Qwen2.5 led to the censors back at work with the reply « I do not have particular details on occasions that occurred in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024 ».

The transformed action also raised questions about its consistency and reliability.

Predictably, ChatGPT cited public details that had been commonly released in worldwide report 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 introspective tone and smoother emotional shifts for a well-paced story, » composed tech writer Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.

« Qwen2.5 provided 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 vivid imagery for the setting, » she said, including that Qwen2.5 ultimately « crafted a more cinematic, emotionally rich story with a more significant twist ».

« DeepSeek wrote an excellent story however lacked stress and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the evident option. »

Opinions, though, differ.

Chen believes that Qwen2.5 does not carry out as highly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to imaginative writing.

« (Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain tasks, but we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as strongly as others in imaginative writing, » he told 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 standard sci-fi movie plot embeded in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, including main characters from the classic Chinese folklore impressive, Journey to the West.

True to form, DeepSeek developed an interesting storyline set in the year 2145 titled, « Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra » – which sees « a future where Buddhism merges with quantum computing ».

It included elaborate 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 remarkably reimagined traditional heroes Sun Wukong as « an ironical, self-aware AI housed in a stolen battle body », Zhu Bajie as a cyborg club owner « drowning in debt and vices » and Sha Wujing as a « silent hulking android » from the Yangtze River, whose « memory cores end up being waterlogged and fragmented ».

ChatGPT put up a good battle, developing an equally remarkable cyberpunk storyline which similarly reimagined « a ragteam of cyber-enhanced misfits, each matching the legendary figures of Journey to the West ».

« This is a world where AI deities guideline, corporations change emperors and cybernetic implants are as common as ancient myths. »

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this obstacle – providing a story that appeared more suited for an animation movie.

« The film 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 new reality and « looking for to comprehend his purpose in this unusual brand-new world », he then leaves and fulfills Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing – « each dealing with their own existential crises ».

The trio then starts a quest, navigating the streets of Chongqing to secure the sacred « Eternal Scroll » from falling into the wrong hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

Dr Zhang noted that it was « tough to make a definitive statement » about which bot was best, including that each showed its own strengths in different locations, « such as language focus, training data and hardware optimization ».

Her insight underscores how Chinese AI models are not simply replicating Western paradigms, but rather evolving in economical development techniques – and providing localised and enhanced outcomes.

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

DeepSeek’s sci-fi motion picture plot demonstrated its imaginative flair that made for a more appealing and imaginative narrative as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT’s efforts.

Unsurprisingly, the more established ChatGPT, bio.rogstecnologia.com.br unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, provides accurate and accurate actions to concerns about Chinese current occasions, which provides it an added advantage.

Experts also weighed in on their thoughts after using DeepSeek and other Chinese AI apps.

« DeepSeek is at a drawback when it pertains to censorship constraints, » kept in mind Isaac Stone Fish, founder and CEO of the research study company Strategy Risks.

« When offered a choice, Chinese users want the non-censored variation – much like anyone else, so I seem like that’s a piece missing from it. »

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

« Ninety percent of people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive topics. They’re using it for other efficient ways, » Chen said.