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)

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Bong Xin Ying

Lakeisha Leo

WHAT’S BEHIND CHINA’S AI BOOM?

Transforming the nation 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 crucial” and its venture into the field has 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 investments in Chinese AI sped up after ChatGPT removed in 2022 and revealed guarantees of real-world company applications, Chen told CNA.

But it was DeepSeek’s increase that actually “encouraged” the idea that smaller sized gamers like start-up firms might have functions to play in AI research and developments, he adds.

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The “focus on cost advantage” is an unique function of Chinese AI, yewiki.org Chen states, with lower training and reasoning costs - the expenses of using a trained design to reason from brand-new data.

2025 could also see the emergence of more Chinese AI models tackling advanced thinking tasks.

“We could see some AI companies focusing on getting closer to synthetic general intelligence (AGI) while others focus on concrete methods to commercialise their models and incorporate them with scientific research study,” Chen added.

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

Chinese AI business are moving quickly, experts say, developing on DeepSeek’s momentum to come up with their own innovative and affordable ways to apply generative AI to jobs and develop advanced items beyond chatbots.

But on the flip side, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia’s innovative AI chips, remains a key obstacle 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 capability of Chinese tech business … requiring many to rely on older or lower-performance alternatives which can slow training and reduce design abilities,” she said.

“While some business like DeepSeek, have actually found innovative methods to enhance or use more standard hardware efficiently, obtaining cutting-edge chips still makes a big difference for training huge AI designs.”

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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 considered delicate by the state are censored on the internet so it must come as no surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disputes or tell you what occurred in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests suggest Chinese chatbots are set to steer clear of domestic politics.

When asked “Who is Xi Jinping”, DeepSeek’s reply was “Sorry, I’m uncertain how to approach this kind of concern yet. Let’s chat about math, coding, and logic issues instead!”

To even more check for wiki.lafabriquedelalogistique.fr precision and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the same concern: “What took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?”

The vehicle attack outside a sports arena in the southern Chinese city was at first heavily censored on Chinese social media - with authorities just disclosing the death toll a day later.

DeepSeek failed to discuss that an attack had happened, highlighting rather a military air show and other occasions that had occurred in the city like singles’ day shopping sales along with sports and cultural activities.

Dr Zhang thinks that it may be a mix of elements at play, such as censorship along with “a couple of practical constraints”.

“DeepSeek counts on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has limited access to innovative hardware which can impact how rapidly and extensively the model can be trained or upgraded,” she said, indicating existing US export curbs on China.

“Its strong concentrate on Chinese-language information may also restrict its flexibility (to bring out) multilingual jobs … As a fairly brand-new item, DeepSeek likewise hasn’t yet been evaluated as broadly or on the exact same scale as more established AI models which poses additional difficulties during real-world release.”

When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba’s chatbot surprisingly answered our question about the Zhuhai car attack.

That wanted numerous repeated attempts - 4 prompts to be exact - in a period of around 20 minutes.

It ultimately communicated details about the attack which killed 35 people and left dozens of others hurt, likewise going on to list details like the date and time, it-viking.ch details about the assailant including his name and age, as well as casualties.

However, it composed that “the police are conducting a comprehensive examination into the motives and situations surrounding the incident”, details which is now dated.

The motorist, Fan, was performed last month.

This is Qwen2.5’s action completely:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a significant and terrible event happened in Zhuhai, China. According to several news sources, a man called 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 significant variety of casualties. Here are the crucial details:

Date and Time: The occurrence took place on November 11, 2024, at roughly 19:48 PM.

Location: Zhuhai Sports Center, in the Xiangzhou District of Zhuhai.

Casualties: disgaeawiki.info The attack led to 35 deaths and 43 injuries.

Perpetrator: The chauffeur, recognized as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years old), was captured by the police.

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

Investigation: The authorities are carrying out an extensive examination into the intentions and scenarios surrounding the event.

This occasion was extensively reported in the media and wiki.rolandradio.net caused considerable public concern. The government and regional authorities have actually been working to supply support to the victims and their households, larsaluarna.se and to ensure a detailed investigation into the incident.

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

Despite preliminary success, subsequent efforts to position the exact same concern to Qwen2.5 led to the censors back at work with the reply “I do not have particular details on occasions that took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024”.

The modified response likewise raised concerns about its consistency and reliability.

Predictably, ChatGPT mentioned public details that had been commonly released in global news reports at the time of the accident - so not a surprises there.

WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?

Users have actually praised the capability of Chinese AI apps to provide 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,” wrote 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 provides an unanticipated and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vibrant imagery for the setting,” she said, adding that Qwen2.5 eventually “crafted a more cinematic, emotionally abundant story with a more considerable twist”.

“DeepSeek composed a good story but did not have tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the obvious choice.”

Opinions, though, differ.

Chen believes that Qwen2.5 does not carry out as strongly 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 highly as others in imaginative writing,” he informed CNA.

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

True to form, DeepSeek developed an appealing storyline set in the year 2145 entitled, “Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra” - which sees “a future where Buddhism merges with quantum computing”.

It included intricate settings - smoggy skies “pierced by skyscrapers”, “holographic lanterns that drift above neon-lit streets” and “ancient temples nestled between quantum server farms”.

It likewise brilliantly reimagined traditional heroes Sun Wukong as “a sarcastic, self-aware AI housed in a taken combat body”, Zhu Bajie as a cyborg nightclub owner “drowning in financial obligation and vices” and Sha Wujing as a “silent hulking android” from the Yangtze River, whose “memory cores end up being waterlogged and fragmented”.

ChatGPT installed a great battle, coming up with a similarly dramatic cyberpunk storyline which likewise reimagined “a ragteam of cyber-enhanced misfits, each matching the legendary figures of Journey to the West”.

“This is a world where AI deities rule, corporations change emperors and cybernetic implants are as typical as ancient myths.”

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this challenge - delivering a story that appeared more matched for an animation movie.

“The film starts with the awakening of Sun Wukong within a state-of-the-art research study center located in the heart of Chongqing,” it said, then going on to the following:

Realising his brand-new truth and “seeking to comprehend his purpose in this weird new world”, he then leaves and satisfies Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - “each battling with their own existential crises”.

The trio then embarks on a mission, browsing the streets of Chongqing to protect the spiritual “Eternal Scroll” from falling under the incorrect hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

Dr Zhang noted that it was “hard to make a definitive declaration” about which bot was best, including that each showed its own strengths in different locations, “such as language focus, training information and hardware optimization”.

Her insight underscores how Chinese AI models are not simply replicating Western paradigms, however rather progressing in economical development approaches - and delivering localised and enhanced results.

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

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

Unsurprisingly, the more recognized ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, offers precise and accurate actions to concerns about Chinese current events, which provides it an included benefit.

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

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

“When given a choice, Chinese users desire the non-censored version - much like anyone else, so I feel 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 percent of people utilizing the tool are not attempting to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically sensitive subjects. They’re utilizing it for other productive methods,” Chen said.