Citing people with direct knowledge of the matter, Nikkei Asia reports that Tencent Holdings and the fintech affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding, Ant Group, have been instructed not to offer access to ChatGPT services on their platforms, either directly or via third parties.
Furthermore, technology companies in the country have been told that they need to report to regulators before they launch their own ChatGPT-like services. It is to be noted that the AI chatbot, which is developed by Microsoft-backed startup OpenAI, is not officially available in China. However, people have been using the platform using a virtual private network (VPN).
The report also says that there have also been dozens of “mini programs” released by third-party developers on Tencent’s WeChat social media app, however, these programs have been suspended by the company under regulatory pressure.
Why China is banning ChatGPT
The regulators moved to ban ChatGPT following a report by China Daily. The publication reportedly claimed that the chatbot “could provide a helping hand to the US government in its spread of disinformation and its manipulation of global narratives for its own geopolitical interests.”
Meanwhile, tech companies are already treading carefully in this regard. While some are going ahead with making ChatGPT-like AI chatbots, others say that they would never integrate ChatGPT into their platforms because “its responses are uncontrollable.”
Chinese tech companies making AI chatbots
Chinese tech giants, including Tencent, Alibaba and Baidu, have all announced their plans for developing ChatGPT-like services. Search engine company Baidu said it will complete internal testing of a ChatGPT-style project called “Ernie Bot” in March. Recently, a report suggested that the company will integrate the AI chatbot in some of the company’s products, Nikkei Asia cited people familiar with the matter at Baidu.
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