From state media to the Shaolin Temple, Baidu’s ChatGPT-style bot sees a multitude of partners

BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese companies, from state media to a Shaolin temple, said on Tuesday they had signed partnerships with Baidu’s ChatGPT-style project ahead of its expected launch next month. The Chinese search engine giant announced last week that it will complete internal testing of its “Arnie bot” in March. It’s a major artificial intelligence (AI)-powered language model that aims to rival Microsoft-backed OpenAI’s hit chatbot. China’s Shaolin Temple, the cradle of Chinese kung fu, said in a statement that it will work with Baidu to integrate Ernie into its operations to create an AI-driven content environment. More than a dozen Chinese media outlets also said they had signed deals with Baidu , including the state-owned Shanghai Securities Journal. The Journal said it will use chatbots to increase its competitiveness and lead an “upgrade” in the financial media industry. Baidu’s banking joint venture with CITIC, as well as its electric vehicle arm Jidu Auto, also said on Tuesday that they would integrate Ernie into their operations. A Baidu spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment

After ChatGPT became the fastest-growing consumer application in history, the series of announcements underscores the growing enthusiasm for generative AI in China, as awareness grows in China of how advanced US AI efforts are. Many other Chinese tech companies, large and small, have said they are working on their own ChatGPT products, including Alibaba Group and JD.com.

(Reporting by Eduardo Baptista in Beijing; Editing by Brenda Goh and Sharon Singleton)