Chinese tech giants are utilizing AI to challenge the US.

• Over the past 18 months, China's major companies, including Alibaba and Tencent, have developed their own AI models in an attempt to profit from the technology's popularity.
• The technology competition between China and the U.S. intensifies as China aims to become a global leader in AI.
• The biggest Chinese tech firms' AI models are featured on CNBC.

The focus of global attention on generative artificial intelligence has been on major U.S. companies such as OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft.

Over the past 18 months, some of China's largest companies, including and , have introduced their own AI models in an attempt to profit from the technology's popularity.

The race between China and the U.S. to become the world leader in AI is intensifying, with China's ambitions adding another layer to the technology battle.

Applications such as OpenAI's ChatGPT, which can generate text, images, and video based on user prompts, are powered by large AI models trained on vast amounts of data, like Google's Gemini.

Beijing has strict requirements for AI models and their uses, so Chinese technology firms must exercise caution when releasing their technology.

The biggest Chinese tech firms' AI models are featured on CNBC.

Baidu: ERNIE

One of China's largest internet companies was among the first in the country to introduce generative AI applications. Its model powers Ernie Bot, an AI chatbot that aims to compete with OpenAI's ChatGPT and has 300 million users.

Baidu claimed that Ernie 4.0, its latest version, has capabilities comparable to GPT-4 from OpenAI. The model is capable of understanding and reasoning, as stated by Baidu.

Baidu's cloud computing division offers the use of its AI model for sale, like other companies.

Alibaba: Tongyi Qianwen

Last year, Alibaba introduced its Tongyi Qianwen models, which are now commonly referred to as Qwen. These models have been developed in various versions to perform different tasks. One model is designed for content creation or solving math problems, while another can interpret audio-based inputs and produce text-based outputs.

Some versions of Qwen models are open-source, allowing developers to download and use them with certain restrictions.

Over 90,000 enterprise users have deployed Alibaba's Qwen models, as stated in May.

Tencent: Hunyuan

Last year, Tencent launched its own foundational model called Hunyuan.

Hunyuan's strong Chinese language processing abilities and "advanced" logical reasoning can be accessed by companies through Tencent's cloud computing business. The model supports functions such as image creation and text recognition.

The model, positioned by Tencent, is versatile and can be utilized by companies across various sectors, including gaming, social media, and e-commerce.

Tencent's WeChat, China's largest messaging app, now features an AI chatbot called Yuanbao, based on the Hunyuan model. This AI assistant can retrieve information and content from WeChat, as Tencent aims to distinguish its product from competitors.

Huawei: Pangu

Huawei has deviated from its rivals by developing AI models tailored to specific industries, such as government, finance, manufacturing, mining, and meteorology.

Huawei claims its Pangu Meteorology Model can accurately predict a typhoon's trajectory over 10 days in just 10 seconds, significantly reducing the previous prediction time of four to five hours.

The firm's cloud computing business offers models that can generate code and virtual human avatars, in addition to being sold through the firm.

ByteDance: Doubao

This year, ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, introduced an AI model, entering the competition against companies such as Baidu and Alibaba.

Despite the other companies, ByteDance released its AI model at a significantly lower cost.

The Doubao model can generate both voices and code for developers, in addition to other functionalities.