China’s artificial intelligence (AI) competition is intensifying, with major tech firms unveiling new models at an accelerated pace. Baidu has taken center stage with the launch of its latest foundation models, ERNIE 4.5 and ERNIE X1, marking another milestone in the country’s AI development.
ERNIE 4.5, Baidu’s latest self-developed multimodal model, enhances comprehension by integrating multiple modalities through joint modeling, the company said on Sunday. Meanwhile, ERNIE X1 is China’s first multimodal deep-thinking reasoning model capable of tool use, excelling in tasks such as complex calculations, logical reasoning, literary creation, and manuscript writing.
Baidu’s latest advancements come amid a wave of AI model releases from Chinese tech giants. Alibaba Cloud recently open-sourced its Tongyi Qianwen QwQ-32B model, which offers a balance between performance and efficiency while significantly reducing deployment costs. The model is designed for mathematics, coding, and general knowledge, with performance matching that of the internationally recognized DeepSeek-R1.
Meanwhile, Tencent introduced Hunyuan Turbo S in February, focusing on real-time responsiveness by doubling text output speed and reducing initial delay by 44%.
Experts say China’s AI development is benefiting from strong research capabilities, a rich open-source ecosystem, and vast data resources. Chen Jing, vice president of the Technology and Strategy Research Institute, highlighted that China’s AI sector has a unique advantage in language comprehension and practical applications, particularly for Chinese-speaking users.
China’s AI push is backed by government policies, with the 2025 Government Work Report emphasizing AI-driven industrial transformation. The “AI Plus” initiative aims to integrate AI with key sectors, promoting intelligent manufacturing, AI-enabled consumer electronics, and autonomous vehicles.
Regional governments are also playing a key role. Shanghai plans to strengthen AI collaboration and open-source development, while Guangdong has rolled out 12 policies supporting AI and robotics, offering subsidies of up to 8 million yuan ($1.11 million) per project.
China’s AI sector is on a rapid growth trajectory, with the industry projected to reach 811 billion yuan ($112 billion) by 2028, according to iResearch. As domestic companies continue pushing the boundaries of AI, China is positioning itself as a global leader in next-generation AI technologies.
