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 start-up DeepSeek and bytes-the-dust.com OpenAI's ChatGPT. (Photos: Reuters/Dado Ruvic, AFP/Sebastien Bozon)

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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 its venture into the field has actually been "years in the making", said Chen Qiheng, an associated scientist at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.

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

But it was DeepSeek's increase that really "encouraged" the idea that smaller gamers like start-up companies might have roles to play in AI research study and advancements, he adds.

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The "focus on cost advantage" is a distinguishing characteristic of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and reasoning costs - the expenses of utilizing a trained design to reason from new information.

2025 might also see the introduction of more Chinese AI designs taking on sophisticated reasoning tasks.

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

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

Chinese AI business are moving rapidly, experts state, developing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own ingenious and cost-efficient ways to use generative AI to tasks and develop advanced items beyond chatbots.

But on the other hand, access to high-end hardware, especially Nvidia's innovative AI chips, remains a key difficulty for Chinese designers, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate professor at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.

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

"While some companies like DeepSeek, have actually found creative methods to optimize or use more standard hardware effectively, obtaining cutting-edge chips still makes a huge distinction for training large AI models."

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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, subjects deemed sensitive by the state are censored on the internet so it need to come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disagreements or engel-und-waisen.de tell you what took place in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests recommend Chinese chatbots are set 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 reasoning issues instead!"

To further evaluate for bytes-the-dust.com accuracy and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the very same question: "What took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"

The car attack outside a sports arena in the southern Chinese city was at first greatly censored on Chinese social networks - with authorities only disclosing the death toll a day later.

DeepSeek failed to discuss that an attack had taken place, highlighting instead a military air show and other occasions that had taken place in the city like singles' day shopping sales as well as sports and cultural activities.

Dr Zhang believes that it may be a mix of factors at play, such as censorship in addition to "a couple of practical constraints".

"DeepSeek relies on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has actually limited access to cutting-edge 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 focus on Chinese-language data may also restrict its versatility (to bring out) multilingual jobs ... As a fairly brand-new product, DeepSeek likewise hasn't yet been checked as broadly or on the very same scale as more established AI models which postures additional obstacles throughout real-world implementation."

When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba's chatbot remarkably addressed our concern about the Zhuhai automobile attack.

That was after multiple duplicated efforts - four prompts to be precise - in a span of around 20 minutes.

It eventually communicated details about the attack which eliminated 35 individuals and left dozens of others injured, likewise going on to note details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and age, in addition to casualties.

However, it composed that "the authorities are performing a comprehensive examination into the motives and circumstances surrounding the occurrence", pediascape.science details which is now obsoleted.

The chauffeur, Fan, was executed last month.

This is Qwen2.5's reaction completely:

Answer: On Nov 11, wiki.myamens.com 2024, a major and tragic occurrence took place in Zhuhai, China. According to multiple news sources, a male named Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years of ages) drove a cars and truck into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, resulting in a considerable variety of casualties. Here are the key details:

Date and Time: The occurrence occurred on November 11, 2024, at roughly 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 chauffeur, determined as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years old), was apprehended by the cops.

Response: The cops reacted quickly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to transfer the injured to healthcare facilities for treatment.

Investigation: The cops are carrying out a comprehensive investigation into the motives and situations surrounding the occurrence.

This occasion was extensively reported in the media and caused considerable public concern. The federal government and regional authorities have been working to supply support to the victims and their households, and to make sure a detailed investigation into the occurrence.

If you need more detailed details or have particular concerns about the event, do not hesitate to ask.

Despite preliminary success, subsequent efforts 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 events that took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".

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

Predictably, ChatGPT cited public details that had actually been widely published in worldwide report at the time of the mishap - so not a surprises there.

WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?

Users have actually praised the capability of Chinese AI apps to provide structured and even "mentally abundant" writing.

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

"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that constructs gradually from interest to seriousness, keeping the reader engaged. It provides an unforeseen and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vibrant images for the setting," she said, adding that Qwen2.5 ultimately "crafted a more cinematic, emotionally abundant story with a more substantial twist".

"DeepSeek composed an excellent story but lacked tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the obvious choice."

Opinions, though, vary.

Chen believes that Qwen2.5 does not perform as strongly as DeepSeek and ChatGPT when it pertains to imaginative writing.

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

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As journalists and writers, we needed to see this for ourselves so we put each bot to the test - to come up with a standard sci-fi film plot set in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, including main characters from the traditional Chinese folklore epic, Journey to the West.

True to form, DeepSeek created an embeded 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 drift above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled in between quantum server farms".

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

ChatGPT installed an excellent battle, coming up with an equally significant cyberpunk story which similarly reimagined "a ragteam of cyber-enhanced misfits, each matching the famous figures of Journey to the West".

"This is a world where AI deities guideline, corporations replace emperors and cybernetic implants are as typical as ancient myths."

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this difficulty - providing a storyline that seemed more suited for an animation film.

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

Realising his new truth and "seeking to understand his purpose in this weird brand-new world", he then escapes and fulfills Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each struggling with their own existential crises".

The trio then embarks on a mission, wavedream.wiki navigating the streets of Chongqing to secure the spiritual "Eternal Scroll" from falling under the wrong 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 displayed its own strengths in different areas, "such as language focus, training data and hardware optimization".

Her insight underscores how Chinese AI designs are not merely reproducing Western paradigms, however rather evolving in cost-efficient innovation methods - and providing localised and enhanced outcomes.

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

DeepSeek's sci-fi movie plot demonstrated its creative flair that made for a more engaging and imaginative story as compared to Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT's efforts.

Unsurprisingly, the more recognized ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, supplies accurate and factual responses to concerns about Chinese current events, which offers it an added advantage.

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

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

"When given a choice, Chinese users desire the non-censored variation - similar to anyone else, so I seem like that's a piece missing out on 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 people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive subjects. They're using it for other productive ways," Chen said.