Chinese language search large Baidu unveiled its synthetic intelligence chatbot Ernie Bot, presenting its rival to the Microsoft-backed ChatGPT in a pre-recorded video presentation Thursday that appeared to disappoint traders.
Baidu CEO Robin Li mentioned Ernie Bot was nonetheless not perfected, however the firm went forward with presenting it because of excessive demand. Shares plunged 10% after Li confirmed a prerecorded demonstration of the Ernie bot as a substitute of the real-time stay demonstration of its capabilities that many had anticipated. They closed down 6.4%.
Throughout the demonstration, Ernie Bot was requested questions on a Chinese language science-fiction novel, “The Three-Physique Downside,” and was requested to make a picture primarily based on prompts.
The Ernie in Ernie Bot stands for “Enhanced Illustration of Data Integration.”
“Baidu has for over a decade continued in investing in synthetic intelligence … Ernie Bot is the results of a few years of arduous work,” mentioned Li. He mentioned the primary model of Ernie Bot was developed in 2019.
Li mentioned 650 corporations had signed up to make use of Ernie Bot, which will be applied in a wide range of purposes equivalent to searches, AI cloud, autonomous driving and in good units.
The Ernie Bot launch comes months after OpenAI’s ChatGPT was first launched, demonstrating the AI-chatbot’s potential in answering questions and even writing essays. Baidu is amongst a number of Chinese language corporations engaged on comparable chatbots.
In February, Baidu first talked about that the interior testing of its Ernie Bot was virtually full. The corporate, recognized in China for its search engine, has shifted its focus in recent times to synthetic intelligence, together with engaged on autonomous driving expertise and different AI purposes.
In its 2022 fiscal yr, the corporate says it spent 23.3 billion yuan ($3.4 billion) on analysis and growth, equal to a couple of fifth of its income.
