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)

This audio is produced by an AI tool.

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 ending up being 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 scientist at the Asia Society Policy Institute's Center for China Analysis.

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

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

'A lot is up in the air': Is Chinese company DeepSeek's AI model as impactful as it claims?

Commentary: DeepSeek - how a Chinese AI business just altered the guidelines of tech-geopolitics

The "focus on expense advantage" is a distinguishing characteristic of Chinese AI, Chen says, with lower training and reasoning costs - the costs of utilizing a trained design to draw conclusions from new data.

2025 might also see the development of more Chinese AI designs tackling advanced thinking jobs.

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

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

Chinese AI companies are moving rapidly, experts state, constructing on DeepSeek's momentum to come up with their own innovative and affordable methods to use generative AI to tasks and develop advanced products beyond chatbots.

But on the other hand, access to high-end hardware, particularly Nvidia's advanced AI chips, remains a crucial 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 lots of to count on older or lower-performance alternatives which can slow training and minimize design capabilities," she said.

"While some business like DeepSeek, have actually discovered creative ways to enhance or utilize more basic hardware effectively, obtaining innovative chips still makes a big difference for training huge AI designs."

DeepSeek-Nvidia chips: Singapore states it expects business to adhere to its laws

US looking into whether DeepSeek used limited AI chips obtained through other nations, source states

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 sensitive by the state are censored on the web so it need to come as not a surprise that Chinese-made chatbots will not acknowledge territorial conflicts or inform you what happened in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Tests suggest 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 type of concern yet. Let's chat about mathematics, coding, and reasoning issues instead!"

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

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

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

Dr Zhang thinks that it might be a mix of factors at play, such as censorship as well as "a few useful constraints".

"DeepSeek depends on a mix of older graphics processing systems and has limited access to cutting-edge hardware which can affect 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 data might also limit its versatility (to bring out) multilingual tasks ... As a fairly new product, DeepSeek likewise hasn't yet been checked as broadly or on the very same scale as more established AI models which poses additional challenges during real-world release."

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

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

It ultimately relayed details about the attack which eliminated 35 individuals and left lots of others hurt, also going on to list details like the date and time, details about the assailant including his name and age, along with casualties.

However, it composed that "the cops are carrying out a comprehensive investigation into the motives and situations surrounding the event", details which is now dated.

The chauffeur, Fan, was performed last month.

This is Qwen2.5's action completely:

Answer: On Nov 11, 2024, a major and terrible occurrence took place in Zhuhai, China. According to multiple news sources, a man named Fan Weiqiu (樊某, male, 62 years of ages) drove a car into a crowd at the Zhuhai Sports Center, leading to a considerable number of casualties. Here are the key details:

Date and Time: The occurrence happened on November 11, 2024, at approximately 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 of ages), was apprehended by the authorities.

Response: The police responded quickly to the scene, and emergency services worked to transfer the hurt to healthcare facilities for treatment.

Investigation: The authorities are conducting a thorough examination into the intentions and circumstances surrounding the incident.

This event was extensively reported in the media and caused considerable public issue. The federal government and regional authorities have actually been working to offer assistance to the victims and their families, and to ensure a detailed investigation into the occurrence.

If you require more detailed details or have particular questions about the occurrence, feel complimentary to ask.

Despite initial success, subsequent efforts to position the exact same question 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 modified response likewise raised concerns about its consistency and dependability.

Predictably, ChatGPT pointed out public details that had actually been extensively released in worldwide report at the time of the mishap - so no surprises there.

WHICH IS MORE CREATIVE?

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

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

"Qwen2.5 provided a story that builds slowly from curiosity to seriousness, keeping the reader engaged. It offers an unanticipated and impactful twist at the end and immersive descriptions and vivid images for the setting," she said, including that Qwen2.5 eventually "crafted a more cinematic, mentally rich story with a more substantial twist".

"DeepSeek composed a good story but did not have stress and an impactful climax, making Qwen2.5 the evident choice."

Opinions, however, differ.

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

"(Qwen2.5) is on par with DeepSeek V3 on certain jobs, however we can likewise see that it is refraining from doing as strongly as others in imaginative writing," he informed CNA.

Related:

China's brand-new face of AI: Who is DeepSeek creator Liang Wenfeng?

'Made in China': Pride, pleasant surprise from Chinese netizens as DeepSeek jolts international AI scene

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

True to form, systemcheck-wiki.de DeepSeek created an interesting storyline embeded in the year 2145 titled, "Neon Pilgrimage: The Silicon Sutra" - which sees "a future where Buddhism merges with quantum computing".

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

It also brilliantly reimagined conventional heroes Sun Wukong as "an ironical, self-aware AI housed in a stolen combat body", Zhu Bajie as a cyborg nightclub owner "drowning in debt and vices" and Sha Wujing as a "quiet hulking android" from the Yangtze River, whose "memory cores become waterlogged and fragmented".

ChatGPT set up a good fight, creating a similarly remarkable cyberpunk storyline which similarly 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 misconceptions."

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

"The film begins with the awakening of Sun Wukong within a modern research study facility situated in the heart of Chongqing," it said, then going on to explain the following:

Realising his new reality and "seeking to comprehend his function in this unusual new world", he then leaves and fulfills Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing - "each having problem with their own existential crises".

The trio then embarks on a quest, navigating the streets of Chongqing to safeguard the sacred "Eternal Scroll" from falling under the wrong hands.

SO WHICH IS BETTER?

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

Her insight underscores how Chinese AI designs are not simply reproducing Western paradigms, but rather evolving in affordable development approaches - and delivering localised and improved outcomes.

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

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

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

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

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

"When offered a choice, Chinese users desire the non-censored variation - much like anyone else, so I feel like that's a piece missing out on from it."

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

"Ninety percent of individuals utilizing the tool are not trying to get a deeper understanding about Xi Jinping or politically delicate subjects. They're utilizing it for other productive methods," Chen said.