International Digital Originals

Name: Can China's ChatGPT clones give it an edge over the U.S. in an A.I. arms race?
Uploaded: 2023-04-17T02:12:46.000Z
Duration: 8 min 16 s
Description: Chinese tech giants are launching products to rival artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT. Baidu has launched Ernie Bot, and Alibaba said it soon plans to roll out Tongyi Qianwen. But these chatbots in China will be subject to Beijing's strict censorship regime and regulations governing the development of AI. Will they prevail?

Can China's ChatGPT clones give it an edge over the U.S. in an A.I. arms race?

Chinese tech giants are launching products to rival artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT. Baidu has launched Ernie Bot, and Alibaba said it soon plans to roll out Tongyi Qianwen. But these chatbots in China will be subject to Beijing's strict censorship regime and regulations governing the development of AI. Will they prevail?

08:16

Sun, Apr 16 202310:12 PM EDT

Arjun Kharpal

ChatGPT, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by U.S. firm OpenAI, has caused excitement around the world.

Now Chinese technology giants are rolling out their rivals to ChatGPT. Baidu is testing its chatbot called Ernie Bot, while Alibaba is rolling out Tongyi Qianwen.

But these launches come against an interesting backdrop – heightened scrutiny by Chinese regulators on the domestic tech sector, Beijing's political censorship, and rivalry between China and the world's democracies.

Chinese chatbots are expected to look very different from their Western counterparts.

While ChatGPT can answer questions on sensitive topics — sometimes inaccurately — Chinese chatbots reportedly shut down some questions.

Since late 2020, China has introduced a slew of regulations, with some explicitly targeting AI applications, including chatbots.

So what exactly will China's rivals to ChatGPT look like, and how will they develop going forward? Watch the video to find out more.