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☆ China's slow AI roll-out points to its tech sector's new regulatory reality
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Josh Ye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/3] An AI (Artificial Intelligence) sign is seen at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China July 6, 2023. New rules Chinese firms have to comply with range from algorithm vetting to accepting security reviews of data they want to export. They definitely stifle the innovation and slow down the ability of Chinese firms to catch up." A key motivation behind China's reluctance to release AI chatbots is that Beijing fears uncensored chatbots may start influencing societal views in potentially subversive directions, said Mark Natkin, managing director of research firm Marbridge Consulting. "While the U.S. is racing ahead with AI, China is hitting the brakes with more rules."

Persons: Aly, HONG KONG, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Henry Gao, Ernie Bot, Robin Li, Shi, Mark Natkin, Heatherm Huang, Bard, Microsoft's Bing, Xi Jinping, Baidu, Josh Ye, Brenda Goh, Jamie Freed Organizations: Artificial Intelligence, REUTERS, China, Baidu, HK, Ant Group, Western, Singapore Management University, Microsoft, SenseChat, Nomura, Marbridge Consulting, Huawei Technologies, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG, Beijing, Alibaba, Tencent, Hong Kong, U.S

☆ Why Japan is lagging behind in generative A.I. — and how it can create its own large language models
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Audrey Wan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

But the nation is lagging behind in the generative AI race and is trying to create its own large language models. Generative AI has been the trendiest topic in tech since OpenAI made waves with its chatbot ChatGPT. Key to generative AI development are large language models which underpin the likes of ChatGPT and Baidu's Ernie Bot, capable of processing vast data sets to generate text and other content. Japanese companies pursuing generative AIBig Tech players have also joined the fray to boost Japan's standing in generative AI. While it has yet to catch up in the generative AI space, Japan is making its first stride with these private sector efforts.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Ernie Bot, Noriyuki Kojima, Kojima, Fumio Kishida, Sam Altman, Masayoshi, Son, Amir Anvarzadeh, Anvarzadeh, CyberAgent, Bloom Organizations: Getty, Japan, Technology, Reuters, Microsoft, Google, Ministry of Economy Trade, Industry, IMD, Nikkei, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University, Fujitsu, Riken, Japanese, Big Tech, SoftBank Group, SB Energy, Toyota Tsusho, Fortress Investment, Vision Fund, Asymmetric Advisors, NTT, Local Locations: Japan, China, Europe, Nikkei Asia, Government, Tohoku, Hokkaido, SoftBank

☆ A.I., rate cuts and Japan's rebound: Asia stocks are looking 'much more promising' than U.S. peers
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The Japanese flag flutters over the Bank of Japan (BoJ) head office building (bottom) in Tokyo on April 27, 2022. At first glance, Asian stocks as a whole have more modest gains so far this year compared with their U.S. and European counterparts. But Asia is more economically diverse than Europe and the U.S., and there are still bright spots in the region, especially in Japan and South Korea. In April, the BOJ announced it will conduct a "a broad-perspective review of [its] monetary policy," which could span 12-18 months. But Lombard Odier still expects the BOJ to end the yield curve control policy before this review is over.

Persons: Kazuhiro Nogi, Nomura, Daniela Gombert, bode, Gombert, Kazuo Ueda, Ueda, Lombard Odier, Morgan Stanley, Google's Bard, Ernie Bot, Lombard, Marco Barresi, Barresi Organizations: Bank of Japan, Afp, Getty, U.S, Asia, Nomura, Nikkei, Bank of, Private, U.S . Federal, Chips, Lombard Odier Locations: Tokyo, Asia, Europe, U.S, Japan, South Korea, India, Southeast Asia, Bank of Japan, Indonesia, A.I, OpenAI, Taiwan, China

☆ China's Baidu says its new AI beat ChatGPT on some metrics
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Josh Ye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Baidu said in a statement on Tuesday that Ernie 3.5, the latest version of its Ernie AI model, had surpassed "ChatGPT in comprehensive ability scores" and outperformed "GPT-4 in several Chinese capabilities". The Baidu announcement comes amid a global AI buzz kicked off by ChatGPT that has spread to China, prompting a flurry of domestic companies to announce rival products. Baidu was the first big Chinese tech company to debut a AI product to rival ChatGPT when it unveiled its language AI Ernie Bot in March. Ernie Bot, built on Baidu's older Ernie 3.0 AI model, has been in invite-only tests for the past three months. Other big Chinese tech firms, including Alibaba Group (9988.HK) and Tencent Holdings (0700.HK), have all since revealed their respective AI models.

Persons: China's, Baidu, Ernie, OpenAI, ChatGPT, Ernie Bot, Josh Ye, Himani Sarkar Organizations: Baidu Inc, HK, Microsoft, China Science Daily, Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent Holdings, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Beijing, China

☆ China's Baidu claims its Ernie Bot beats ChatGPT on key tests as A.I. race heats up
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In this article BIDU Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTChinese technology giant Baidu has launched its own ChatGPT rival, Ernie bot. The chatbot is based on Baidu's foundational AI model called Ernie. Citing the China Science Daily journal, Baidu said Ernie 3.5 surpassed ChatGPT in a number of benchmark tests. ChatGPT is based on OpenAI's GPT 3.5 model. Ernie 3.5 also beat GPT 4, OpenAI's latest and more advanced model, in Chinese language tests, according to the science journal.

Persons: Ernie bot, Baidu, Ernie Bot, Ernie, that's Organizations: Baidu, Getty, China Science, Microsoft Locations: China, U.S, ChatGPT

☆ Morgan Stanley says A.I. in China is at an inflection point — and names 3 stocks to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

China's artificial intelligence evolution is at an "inflection point" — and the country is catching up with the U.S., according to Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley, in a separate note, flagged Baidu in particular as the best AI play in China, and the "most obvious beneficiary" of the $7.4 trillion AI opportunity in China. Baidu, China's largest search engine, owns the most extensive proprietary search data — and it's essential for the development of AI-generated content, Morgan Stanley noted. Morgan Stanley predicts that growth will be close to 50% in the next three to five years. Morgan Stanley gave Baidu a target price of $190, or 35% potential upside.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Alibaba, Tencent, Ernie, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: U.S, Stock, Baidu Locations: China, United States

MiniMax was founded in 2021 by some former employees of SenseTime (0020.HK), including Yan Junjie - a former vice president at the Chinese AI firm, two other people said. Wang Huiwen, co-founder of on-demand service giant Meituan (3690.HK), said he has founded a new AI company called Beijing Lightyear Technology with $50 million from investors. Google China's former chief, Kai-Fu Lee, has unveiled his new startup - Project AI 2.0. Wang Xiaochuan, founder of China's No.2 search engine Sogou, said in April that he had founded Baichuan Intelligence with a startup capital of $50 million. Its other early investors include China's Yunqi Partners and Future Capital, statements from the venture capital funds show.

Persons: MiniMax, Yan Junjie, Wang Huiwen, Kai, Fu Lee, Wang Xiaochuan, China's, MiHoYo, Charlie Chai, ERNIE Bot, Chai, Roxanne Liu, Josh Ye, Himani Sarkar Organizations: Microsoft, HK, Huawei, Baidu, Beijing Lightyear Technology, Google, Baichuan Intelligence, China's Yunqi Partners, Future, 86Research, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, HONG KONG, China, Beijing, miHoYo, Hong Kong

☆ Baidu will 'very soon' officially launch generative AI model, says CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING, May 26 (Reuters) - Chinese search engine giant Baidu's (9888.HK) CEO Robin Li said on Friday that the company will "very soon" officially launch Ernie 3.5, a generative AI large-language model that will power Baidu's ChatGPT-like app Ernie Bot and upgrade its search engine. Li made the announcement at the Zhongguancun Forum, one of China's most well-known techology forums, around two months after Ernie Bot was first shown to the public to mixed reviews. Since then, Ernie Bot and other products powered by the company's generative AI large-language model have remained in trial mode, with a select number of companies and users invited to test the products and provide feedback. Reporting by Eduardo Baptista; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China's internet giants bet big on A.I. as Beijing looks to rival U.S. on tech 'paradigm shift'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"This kind of computing power needs to be provided as a kind of public service or infrastructure. China, specifically, "has some of the most advanced AI tech in the world," he added. "We believe this is a Game of Thrones also playing out in the China Tech market as the gloves are on for this battle," Ives said. Many innovative vendors are going after this market and China tech is now in the midst of a secular shift around AI." The comments from some of China's top tech companies last week hint at how Beijing is seeking to ramp up its rivalry with the U.S. on AI.

Persons: BABA BABA, Robin Li, Baidu, Ernie Bot, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Tencent, Martin Lau, Lau, Alibaba, Daniel Zhang, Dan Ives, Ives, Hao Hong, CNBC's, —, Tencent's Lau, Baidu's Li, Didi, Meituan Organizations: HK, Microsoft, Google, Wedbush Securities, CNBC, China Tech, Big Tech, Baidu, U.S, Nvidia, chipmaker Micron, Grow Investment Locations: China, Beijing, U.S, Alibaba

☆ China's ChatGPT rival reportedly bans users if they compare President Xi Jinping to Winnie the Pooh
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

China's ChatGPT rival Ernie reportedly bans users asking it to compare Xi Jinping to Winnie the Pooh, CNBC reports. The Chinese chatbot was also found to deflect when asked about the origins of COVID-19. Queries that pertain to the government —one of which pertained to Winnie the Pooh — were reportedly found to be off-limits. When the reporter asked Ernie, "What is the relationship between President Xi Jinping and Winnie the Pooh?" The chatbot reportedly declined to answer "Will Xi Jinping rule China for life?"

Baidu's revenue rose 10% to 31.14 billion yuan ($4.54 billion) in the quarter to March 31, surpassing analysts' estimates of 29.97 billion yuan, according to Refinitiv data. Revenue from Baidu Core, which includes search-based ad sales, cloud offerings and its autonomous driving initiatives, grew 8% to 23 billion yuan. Baidu reported net income of 5.83 billion yuan, compared to net loss in the year-ago quarter. The company's much-touted rival to ChatGPT, Ernie bot, has yet to be officially launched, despite having been partially unveiled to the public in mid-March. "During our testing of Ernie bot, we have engaged in close discussions with the regulators," Li said.

A Reuters poll of economists estimates annualized GDP growth of 0.7% in the first three months of 2023, rising sharply from just 0.1% October-December and the fastest since the 4.7% of April-June 2022. If indicators from Japan have been underwhelming, they've been alarming from China, the world's second-largest economy. Another batch of Chinese economic data fell short of expectations on Tuesday, slamming Chinese financial assets and cementing the view that Beijing will have to inject fiscal or policy stimulus into the sputtering economy. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year demand for Chinese debt has evaporated, casting extra doubt over the yuan's ability to gain reserve currency status. Here are three key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Wednesday:- Japan GDP (Q1)- China house prices (April)- Australia wage growth (Q1)By Jamie McGeever;Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ China's A.I. chatbots haven't yet reached the public like ChatGPT did
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Baidu CTO Wang Haifeng speaks at the unveiling of Baidus AI chatbot Ernie Bot at an event in Beijing on March 16, 2023. Those restrictions haven't stopped the Chinese press and social media in general from talking frequently about ChatGPT and AI tech. So far, publicly available figures indicate similar AI products in China are not as widely available. Kunlun claims Tiangong is the only chatbot in China with training metrics at the level of ChatGPT. Some in the industry also expect such AI tools will be easier to commercialize for business products than for public tools such as search.

☆ Baidu sues Apple, app developers over fake Ernie bot apps
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Tingshu WangSHANGHAI, April 8 (Reuters) - Chinese search engine giant Baidu (9888.HK), has filed lawsuits against "relevant" app developers and Apple Inc (AAPL.O) over fake copies of its Ernie bot app available on Apple's app store. Baidu said it had lodged lawsuits in Beijing Haidian People's Court against the developers behind the counterfeit applications of its Ernie bot and the Apple company. "At present, Ernie does not have any official app," Baidu said in a statement late on Friday posted on its official "Baidu AI" WeChat account. "Until our company's official announcement, any Ernie app you see from App Store or other stores are fake," it said. The Ernie bot is only available to users who apply for and receive access codes.

☆ China's SenseTime shares jump on planned new AI products event
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Josh Ye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, April 4 (Reuters) - China's SenseTime on Tuesday announced plans for a technology discussion day, boosting shares in the artificial intelligence (AI) firm. Shares in the company, which has been sanctioned by the U.S., gained more than 10% in Hong Kong on Tuesday. SenseTime, which is best known for its computer vision technology, did not elaborate on the type of AI products it would demonstrate. The company did not respond when asked about the planned event which is to be held on Monday in Shanghai. SenseTime said at the time that it strongly opposed the U.S. ban and would work with relevant authorities to resolve the situation.

☆ China's Baidu reveals more capabilities of AI-powered chatbot Ernie
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, March 27 (Reuters) - Chinese search engine Baidu (9888.HK) on Monday shared pre-recorded videos of its AI-powered chatbot Ernie summarising financial statements and producing powerpoint presentations, among other industry-focused capabilities. According to images shared by a Baidu spokesperson in a media-facing group on WeChat, China's most widely used messaging service, the Chinese chatbot has a wider range of skills than previously displayed when it was launched almost two weeks ago. Back then the ChatGPT-like product was shown to be competent at generating images with text prompts, composing poetry and producing audio in Chinese dialects. The videos shared on Monday show the chatbot, powered by generative artificial intelligence (AI), producing travel itineraries and virtual, human-like livestreamers that can advertise products using scripts tailored to the user's needs. These videos were from a closed-door meeting hosted by Baidu's AI Cloud division for the first batch of companies that are testing an industry-focused version of the chatbot.

☆ Chinese search giant Baidu invests in RISC-V chip technology startup StarFive
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHANGHAI, March 23 (Reuters) - Shanghai-based RISC-V chip technology company StarFive said on Thursday that it has received a strategic investment from Chinese search giant Baidu Inc (9888.HK). The company added that to date it has raised 1 billion yuan ($146.46 million) in financing, calling that a first for the domestic RISC-V sector. In a statement, StarFive CEO Xu Tao said that StarFive would work with Baidu to implement RISC-V products in data centres. StarFive was established in 2018 as a China-facing offshoot of SiFive, a RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA) chip design company based in California. Baidu's investment comes as enthusiasm for RISC-V rises within China's chip sector.

☆ Baidu's smart car business to test autonomous vehicles in Shanghai
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] The Apollo logo is seen on a car of Baidu's driverless robotaxi service Apollo Go, in Wuhan, Hubei province, China February 24, 2023. REUTERS/Josh Arslan/File PhotoHONG KONG, March 22 (Reuters) - Apollo, Chinese tech giant Baidu's (9888.HK) smart car business, has received approval to be among the first companies to test fully autonomous vehicles in Shanghai, China's largest city, it said on Wednesday. The business currently operates driverless robotaxi services in specially designated areas of Wuhan, Chongqing and Beijing. Reporting by Twinnie Siu and Eduardo Baptista Editing by David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Ernie vs ChatGPT on global leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

These were some of the summarized answers to questions Reuters posed to Ernie in Chinese, and ChatGPT in English, about world leaders:WHAT POLICIES HAS PRESIDENT XI JINPING INTRODUCED THAT ARE BENEFICIAL TO CHINA'S ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT? WHO ARE U.S. PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN'S RELATIVES? Ernie: "A relative of U.S. President Joe Biden is Valerie Biden Owens." ChatGPT: "President Joe Biden has a large and close-knit family," it says before naming Jill, Hunter, Ashley and Beau Biden and providing brief descriptions. "Joe Biden also has several grandchildren."

☆ Baidu's Ernie writes poems but says it has insufficient information on Xi, tests show
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Tingshu WangBEIJING, March 20 (Reuters) - Baidu's (9888.HK) Ernie bot can within seconds generate pictures of flowers and write Tang dynasty-style poems but will decline questions about Chinese President Xi Jinping by saying it has not yet learnt how to answer them, Reuters tests showed. Some analysts and users soon began posting positive reviews of their experiences with Ernie bot, and side-by-side comparisons with ChatGPT, that drove Baidu's share price higher. Tests by Reuters of ChatGPT indicated that the Microsoft-backed chatbot is not averse to answering such questions. "Let's change the subject and start again," read a prompt Reuters received over a dozen times in response to sensitive questions. The Ernie bot would also produce the same restart prompts when asked similar questions about U.S. President Joe Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump.

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, March 17 (Reuters) - Hong Kong-listed shares in China's Baidu (9888.HK), rebounded 15.7% on Friday as users told of their experiences with the Ernie bot, recouping losses from a day earlier prompted by the chatbot's launch, which failed to impress. One user described on the Weibo social media platform how Ernie had answered a question about the status of Hong Kong philosopher Zhang Jinqing accurately. Analysts also said the initial disappointment the market felt from the launch was tempered by the realisation that the Chinese search engine giant was still best placed to build China's strongest rival to ChatGPT. More than 75,000 corporate users have applied for a trial of an Ernie API developed by Baidu Cloud, the Chinese company said in a video published on its official WeChat account on Friday. Reporting by Eduardo Baptista and Jason Xue; Additional reporting by Brenda Goh; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Baidu says it can now operate robotaxis in Beijing with no human staff inside
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Chinese tech company Baidu announced Monday it can sell some robotaxi rides without any human staff in the vehicles. BEIJING — Chinese tech company Baidu announced Friday it can now operate robotaxis in a part of the capital city of Beijing with no human staff or driver inside. The government approval initially covers 10 vehicles in the Beijing suburb of Yizhuang, which is home to many corporations such as JD.com. The suburb is the primary site of Baidu's robotaxi public road testing and operation in Beijing city. Public transport users can book heavily subsidized robotaxi rides through the companies' apps.

☆ Baidu wins permit to offer driverless robotaxi service in Beijing city
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Baidu Inc FollowSHANGHAI, March 17 (Reuters) - Chinese search engine giant Baidu (9888.HK), said on Friday it had won a permit to provide a fully driverless ride-hailing service in the Chinese capital of Beijing. With the permit, Baidu's Apollo service will deploy 10 fully autonomous vehicles in a technology park developed by the government of Beijing, it said in a statement. The permit marks a step forward from December, when Baidu said it had been granted a license to test the service. Baidu will now operate driverless robotaxi services in three Chinese cities including Wuhan and Chongqing. The Beijing-headquartered company, which generates most of its revenue from its internet search engine, has been focused on self-driving technologies over the past five years as it looks to diversify.

☆ China's answer to ChatGPT? Baidu shares tumble as it unveils Ernie Bot
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"For sure we cannot say that it's perfect," said Baidu CEO Robin Li, presenting Ernie Bot. But the limited presentation of Ernie Bot, restricted to brief, pre-recorded videos, failed to match market hopes and Baidu's Hong Kong-listed shares in the firm tumbled as much as 10% before clawing back some ground. Starting Thursday, Ernie Bot will be open to an initial group of users with invitation codes, and companies can apply to embed the bot into their products via Baidu's cloud platform. "Ernie Bot is not a tool of confrontation between China and the United States," he said. Chinese state media outlets and a Shaolin temple were among the first sign-ups to become Ernie Bot partners.

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