Striving for Artificial General Intelligence: The rise of Chinese AI

Editor's note: Belunn Se, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a senior industry observer based in Shenzhen, China. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN.

On Tuesday, Elon Musk's AI company, xAI, officially launched its latest Grok 3 model with a live demonstration. xAI claims that Grok 3 is currently "the smartest AI on Earth," a statement that has sparked widespread attention. As artificial intelligence technology advances at breakneck speed, global tech companies are significantly increasing their investments in AI, launching innovative products and technologies.

This not only pushes the boundaries of AI applications but also intensifies internal competition within the industry. From OpenAI and DeepMind to emerging technologies like Claude, Gemini and Grok 3, rapid AI iterations have become the new norm in the industry.

Amid the global race for AI dominance, China's AI technology continues to meet challenges while achieving breakthroughs. A notable example is DeepSeek. Since its release of the V3 and R1 models on January 26, DeepSeek's AI assistant has gained significant attention both domestically and internationally, quickly rising to the top of app store download charts across 140 markets worldwide. This breakthrough not only showcases China's innovative strength in AI but also has a profound impact on the global AI industry.

Tech companies worldwide are driving AI boundaries through technological innovation and resource investment, shaping the future of technology. As market demand continues to grow, AI is penetrating more industries, transforming various aspects of society.

Chinese AI excels through algorithm engineering innovation, commercial path innovation and technical independence. Facing U.S. technology blockades and global competition, DeepSeek has significantly improved AI inference efficiency through open-source Large Language Model (LLM) technologies and distillation techniques, accelerating AI democratization and promoting global AI innovation.

At the same time, DeepSeek's founder Liang Wenfeng pointed out that "the V2 model has no overseas returns; it's all domestic." This statement not only reflects confidence in China's domestic AI capabilities but also underscores the nation's commitment to independent innovation. Through open-source and technological breakthroughs, DeepSeek has accelerated the development of China's AI ecosystem while contributing to global AI progress.

While advancing LLM technology, Chinese AI companies are also actively exploring innovative vertical applications. For example, ByteDance's Doubao has pioneered a new commercial AI frontier through Chinese voice interaction and emotional design. Its speech model, powered by end-to-end voice interaction technology, greatly enhances voice expressiveness and control, offering a user experience that surpasses current mainstream technologies like GPT-4. In consumer fields like education and entertainment, Doubao's success marks a step toward AI companies meeting local market demands, gradually achieving breakthroughs in the C-end market.

Despite that, AI technology competition is intensifying globally, and multiple forces are driving China's AI development. The U.S. government's tech blockade policy, particularly the restrictions on chip supplies brought in by the Trump administration, has had a profound impact on the global AI industry. This policy directly affected the construction of computing infrastructure for Chinese AI companies, pushing them to accelerate independent research and development, promoting the adoption of domestic alternatives.

Take NVIDIA as an example. Its leadership in the global AI industry is no accident. By continually investing in GPU clusters and distributed training, NVIDIA solidified its market position. Meanwhile, the U.S. has also invested $500 billion through its Stargate project to build AI infrastructure, further strengthening its global advantage. That, to some extent, has prompted Chinese companies to face challenges head-on in their pursuit of technological self-reliance and innovation.

Additionally, China's strengths in research investment, talent cultivation and industry chain integration are significant. Close cooperation between universities, research institutions and enterprises accelerates the commercialization of technological breakthroughs.

The active capital markets have provided abundant funding for startups, further stimulating innovation. Moreover, the vast domestic market demand, driven by the transformation of manufacturing and the growing need for intelligent consumer goods, has paved the way for rapid technological deployment.

The future of AI is full of possibilities. On the path to artificial general intelligence (AGI), LLMs have become a necessary step and are beginning to show the early forms of AGI.

However, achieving AGI is not effortless. Google's DeepMind team has divided AI development into six major stages. Currently, AI models in specific areas, like AlphaFold and AlphaZero, have demonstrated capabilities that surpass human performance. But from the perspective of general AI, current technologies still have a long way to go before full maturity.

Chinese companies like DeepSeek are actively participating in the global AI innovation wave, with the goal of being at the forefront of technology and driving the progress of the global ecosystem. China is not only well-prepared for the arrival of AGI commercialization, but also contributes Chinese wisdom and strength to global technological development. By continuing to strengthen independent innovation, especially in core AI technologies such as algorithms, chips and data processing, China is able to reduce its reliance on external technologies. Meanwhile, deepening international cooperation, particularly in areas such as global AI governance and ethical standards, will allow China to actively participate in, and lead, rulemaking, demonstrating the responsibility of a major global power.

Moreover, by fully utilizing its vast market advantages and data resources, China can promote AI applications in sectors such as healthcare, education and transportation. Increasing the cultivation and introduction of AI talent and building a multi-tiered talent system will provide strong support for AI development. With policy guidance, capital support and industry collaboration, China is poised to take a leading position in global AI competition.

(If you want to contribute and have specific expertise, please contact us at opinions@cgtn.com. Follow @thouse_opinions on Twitter to discover the latest commentaries in the CGTN Opinion Section.)