'Chinese ChatGPT' to launch soon to take on OpenAI and Google

Baidu is China's largest search engine and the company is planning to debut a new artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot service. What's striking is that this service will be similar to OpenAI's ChatGPT and that it is expected to launch as early as March this year. A Bloomberg report claims that the new tool has not yet been named yet. The AI will also be embedded into Baidu's primary search services. The new AI will reportedly get the same conversation-style search results like OpenAI's popular platform. If the launch timeline is met, Baidu might beat Google to the launch of the next big AI. 

The report suggests that Baidu will use the Ernie system, which is a large-scale machine learning model to train its AI. The AI will use data from several years to develop abilities similar to the ChatGPT.

Baidu is one of the most prominent internet companies in China and it competes with the likes of Tecent, Alibaba, ByteDance. The launch of an AI-based search engine might give the company a lead in one of the emerging sectors in the tech industry.

OpenAI's ChatGPT showcases the power of AI 

OpenAI's ChatGPT has opened new avenues for AI after it was introduced to the public in November last year. The chatbot uses a conversational approach which makes it almost human-like when it comes to responses. The AI took the internet by storm after responding to complex questions relating to facts and figures and emotions and philosophy. ChatGPT registered over a million users within days of being opened to the public. 

The chatbot has been in the news for passing complex professional-level tests made for humans with relative ease. ChatGPT has not only cleared tests built for lawyers and managers but also for medical professionals. Owing to its capability of mimicking a human response within seconds, educational institutes are struggling to frame policies around AI and its usage by students. A top French university has gone ahead and banned the use of ChatGPT by its students.

Also read: Google's new AI can create various genres of music from text description

Big tech is also wanting a slice in the AI revolution. Microsoft has already promised an investment of billion of dollars in this field. Companies are looking for more real-world applications. Before the introduction of ChatGPT, Google Search and Google Assistant were seen as the best and closest form of AI assistant. However, ChatGPT has turned the tables on the search giant. 

Google is feeling the heat from ChatGPT and has promised to invest in 20 AI projects at a time when the company is trimming down expenditures. The search giant laid off 12,000 employees earlier this month in order to keep things from getting worse.