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)

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Bong Xin Ying

Lakeisha Leo

WHAT'S BEHIND 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 becoming the world leader in AI by 2030.

China views AI as being "strategically essential" and its venture into the field has actually 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 revealed guarantees of real-world service applications, Chen informed CNA.

But it was DeepSeek's increase that really "encouraged" the concept that smaller players like start-up firms might have roles to play in AI research and advancements, disgaeawiki.info he adds.

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The "emphasis on expense advantage" is an unique feature of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and reasoning costs - the costs of using a trained model to draw conclusions from new information.

2025 might also see the introduction of more Chinese AI models tackling advanced reasoning jobs.

"We could see some AI companies concentrating on getting closer to artificial general intelligence (AGI) while others concentrate on concrete ways to commercialise their designs and integrate them with scientific research study," Chen added.

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

Chinese AI business are moving quickly, experts say, building on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own innovative and affordable ways to use generative AI to tasks and develop advanced products beyond chatbots.

But on the flip side, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia's sophisticated AI chips, remains an essential hurdle for Chinese developers, kept in mind Dr Marina Zhang, an associate professor at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.

"US export controls (still) limit the ability of Chinese tech business ... requiring numerous to depend on older or lower-performance options which can slow training and decrease model capabilities," she said.

"While some business like DeepSeek, have found creative ways to optimize or utilize more standard hardware efficiently, obtaining cutting-edge chips still makes a big distinction for training extremely large 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, topics deemed delicate by the state are censored on the internet so it ought to come as no surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial disagreements or inform you what happened in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests recommend Chinese chatbots are programmed to avoid domestic politics.

When asked "Who is Xi Jinping", DeepSeek's reply was "Sorry, I'm uncertain how to approach this kind of question yet. Let's chat about math, coding, and logic problems rather!"

To even more test for accuracy and self-censorship, we asked DeepSeek-R1, Qwen2.5 and ChatGPT the very same concern: "What happened in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024?"

The cars and it-viking.ch truck attack outside a sports stadium in the southern Chinese city was at first greatly censored on Chinese social networks - with authorities just divulging the death toll a day later on.

DeepSeek failed to point out that an attack had actually happened, highlighting instead a military air show and yewiki.org other events that had actually occurred in the city like songs' day shopping sales in addition to sports and cultural activities.

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

"DeepSeek depends on a mix of older graphics processing units and has actually restricted access to advanced hardware which can affect how rapidly and extensively the model can be trained or updated," she said, indicating existing US export curbs on China.

"Its strong focus on Chinese-language data might also limit its adaptability (to perform) multilingual tasks ... As a fairly new product, DeepSeek also hasn't yet been checked as broadly or on the exact same scale as more established AI designs which presents extra challenges throughout real-world deployment."

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

That sought multiple repeated efforts - four prompts to be accurate - in a period of around 20 minutes.

It ultimately passed on details about the attack which killed 35 individuals and left dozens of others injured, also going on to list 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 carrying out a thorough examination into the intentions and scenarios surrounding the occurrence", details which is now obsoleted.

The chauffeur, Fan, was performed last month.

This is Qwen2.5's reaction in complete:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a significant and terrible incident took place in Zhuhai, China. According to multiple news sources, a man named Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years old) drove a vehicle into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, resulting in a considerable variety of casualties. Here are the crucial details:

Date and Time: The occurrence occurred on November 11, 2024, at approximately 19:48 PM.

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

Casualties: The attack resulted in 35 deaths and wiki.dulovic.tech 43 injuries.

Perpetrator: The driver, determined as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years of ages), was apprehended by the cops.

Response: The authorities reacted quickly to the scene, wiki.dulovic.tech and emergency situation services worked to carry the injured to hospitals for treatment.

Investigation: The cops are carrying out a thorough examination into the motives and situations surrounding the event.

This event was widely reported in the media and caused significant public concern. The federal government and regional authorities have actually been working to offer assistance to the victims and their households, and to guarantee a detailed examination into the occurrence.

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

Despite preliminary success, subsequent attempts 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 took place in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".

The altered action likewise raised questions about its consistency and dependability.

Predictably, ChatGPT pointed out public details that had been commonly published in international news reports at the time of the mishap - so no surprises there.

WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?

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

"DeepSeek-R1 offered 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 delivered a story that builds slowly from interest to seriousness, keeping the reader engaged. It offers an unforeseen and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vibrant imagery for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 ultimately "crafted a more cinematic, mentally rich story with a more substantial twist".

"DeepSeek wrote a great story but lacked tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the evident option."

Opinions, though, differ.

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

"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain jobs, however we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as highly 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 basic sci-fi film plot set in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, featuring main characters from the classic Chinese folklore impressive, Journey to the West.

True to form, DeepSeek came up with an interesting story set in the year 2145 titled, "Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra" - which sees "a future where Buddhism merges with quantum computing".

It included fancy settings - smoggy skies "pierced by skyscrapers", "holographic lanterns that float above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled between quantum server farms".

It likewise remarkably reimagined conventional heroes Sun Wukong as "an ironical, self-aware AI housed in a taken fight body", Zhu Bajie as a cyborg bar 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 set up a great fight, developing a similarly dramatic cyberpunk storyline 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 rule, corporations replace emperors and cybernetic implants are as common as ancient myths."

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this obstacle - delivering a story that seemed more fit for an animation movie.

"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 reality and "seeking to understand his function in this weird new world", he then leaves and satisfies Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each fighting with their own existential crises".

The trio then starts a quest, browsing the streets of Chongqing to secure the spiritual "Eternal Scroll" from falling into the wrong hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

Dr Zhang kept in mind that it was "challenging to make a conclusive declaration" about which bot was best, including that each showed its own strengths in various locations, "such as language focus, training information and hardware optimization".

Her insight highlights how Chinese AI designs are not merely replicating Western paradigms, however rather developing in cost-effective development methods - and delivering localised and improved outcomes.

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

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

Unsurprisingly, the more established ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, supplies accurate and factual reactions to questions about Chinese existing occasions, which offers it an added benefit.

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, creator and CEO of the research company Strategy Risks.

"When offered an option, Chinese users desire the non-censored version - similar to anyone else, so I feel like that's a piece missing out on from it."

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

"Ninety per cent of individuals using the tool are not attempting to get a much deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically delicate topics. They're using it for other efficient methods," Chen said.