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 startup DeepSeek and 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 goal and China has its sights on ending up being the world leader in AI by 2030.

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

Private and public financial investments in Chinese AI sped up after ChatGPT removed in 2022 and showed pledges of real-world company applications, Chen told CNA.

But it was DeepSeek's increase that truly "encouraged" the concept that smaller sized players like start-up companies could have roles to play in AI research and developments, he adds.

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The "focus on cost benefit" is a distinguishing characteristic of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and reasoning costs - the expenses of using a trained model to draw conclusions from brand-new data.

2025 could likewise see the introduction of more Chinese AI models dealing with innovative reasoning jobs.

"We might see some AI companies concentrating on getting closer to synthetic general intelligence (AGI) while others concentrate on concrete methods to commercialise their designs and incorporate them with clinical research study," Chen added.

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

Chinese AI companies are moving quickly, experts state, developing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own innovative and economical ways to apply generative AI to jobs and establish advanced items beyond chatbots.

But on the flip side, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia's advanced AI chips, remains an essential hurdle for Chinese developers, noted Dr Marina Zhang, it-viking.ch an at University of Technology Sydney's (UTS) Australia-China Relations Institute.

"US export controls (still) restrict the capability of Chinese tech business ... forcing lots of to rely on older or lower-performance options which can slow training and lower model abilities," she said.

"While some companies like DeepSeek, have discovered imaginative ways to enhance or utilize more standard hardware efficiently, obtaining innovative chips still makes a huge 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 sensitive by the state are censored on the web so it should come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial conflicts or tell you what took place in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests suggest Chinese chatbots are configured 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 question yet. Let's chat about mathematics, coding, and reasoning issues rather!"

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

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

DeepSeek failed to mention that an attack had taken location, highlighting rather a military air show and other events that had happened in the city like songs' day shopping sales along with sports and cultural activities.

Dr Zhang believes that it may be a mix of factors at play, such as censorship along with "a few useful constraints".

"DeepSeek counts on a mix of older graphics processing units and has restricted access to innovative hardware which can affect how quickly and extensively the design can be trained or updated," she said, pointing to existing US export curbs on China.

"Its strong concentrate on Chinese-language information might likewise limit its adaptability (to perform) multilingual jobs ... As a fairly brand-new item, DeepSeek also hasn't yet been tested as broadly or on the exact same scale as more established AI models which positions additional challenges during real-world implementation."

When it pertained to Qwen2.5, Alibaba's chatbot surprisingly addressed our question about the Zhuhai vehicle attack.

That sought multiple duplicated attempts - four triggers to be accurate - in a period of around 20 minutes.

It eventually communicated details about the attack which killed 35 individuals and left lots of others hurt, likewise 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 wrote that "the police are conducting an extensive investigation into the intentions and situations surrounding the event", details which is now outdated.

The driver, Fan, was executed last month.

This is Qwen2.5's action completely:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a significant and tragic occurrence happened in Zhuhai, China. According to several news sources, setiathome.berkeley.edu a guy named Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years of ages) drove a vehicle into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, leading to a substantial number of casualties. Here are the crucial details:

Date and Time: The occurrence took place 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 chauffeur, identified as Fan Weiqiu (male, 62 years old), was apprehended by the police.

Response: The authorities responded rapidly to the scene, and emergency situation services worked to carry the hurt to healthcare facilities for treatment.

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

This event was widely reported in the media and triggered significant public issue. The government and regional authorities have been working to offer support to the victims and their families, and to guarantee a detailed investigation into the event.

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

Despite initial success, subsequent attempts to posture the exact same concern to Qwen2.5 resulted in the censors back at work with the reply "I don't have specific details on occasions that occurred in Zhuhai on November 11, 2024".

The modified reaction also raised questions about its consistency and dependability.

Predictably, ChatGPT pointed out public details that had been widely published in global news reports 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 used a story with a more reflective tone and smoother emotional transitions for a well-paced story," composed tech writer Amanda Caswell, who specialises in AI.

"Qwen2.5 delivered a story that constructs slowly from curiosity to urgency, keeping the reader engaged. It provides an unforeseen and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and brilliant imagery for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 eventually "crafted a more cinematic, mentally rich story with a more significant twist".

"DeepSeek wrote an excellent story however lacked tension and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the apparent option."

Opinions, though, vary.

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

"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain jobs, but we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as highly as others in innovative writing," he informed 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 fundamental sci-fi motion picture plot set in the futuristic megacity of Chongqing, including main characters from the timeless Chinese folklore impressive, Journey to the West.

True to form, DeepSeek came up with 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 consisted of intricate settings - smoggy skies "pierced by skyscrapers", "holographic lanterns that drift above neon-lit streets" and "ancient temples nestled in between quantum server farms".

It likewise brilliantly reimagined conventional heroes Sun Wukong as "an ironical, self-aware AI housed in a stolen battle body", engel-und-waisen.de Zhu Bajie as a cyborg bar owner "drowning in financial obligation and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "silent hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores become waterlogged and fragmented".

ChatGPT installed a good battle, coming up with a similarly dramatic 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 rule, corporations change emperors and cybernetic implants are as typical as ancient myths."

Disappointingly, Qwen2.5 fell short in this obstacle - providing a story that appeared more fit for an animation film.

"The movie starts 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 brand-new truth and "looking for to understand his purpose in this odd brand-new world", he then gets away and meets 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 spiritual "Eternal Scroll" from falling under the incorrect hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

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

Her insight highlights how Chinese AI models are not merely duplicating Western paradigms, but rather progressing in economical development techniques - and providing localised and improved results.

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

DeepSeek's sci-fi motion picture plot showed its creative flair that made for a more interesting and creative story as compared to Qwen2.5 and pediascape.science ChatGPT's efforts.

Unsurprisingly, the more recognized ChatGPT, unburdened by Chinese censorship constraints, provides precise and factual reactions to questions about Chinese existing events, which provides it an included advantage.

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

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

"When offered an option, Chinese users want the non-censored version - much like anybody else, so I seem 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, specifically for Chinese users.

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