Chinese tech veterans are quickly launching AI start-ups in an effort to catch up with ChatGPT, a product of OpenAI released in November 2020. These entrepreneurs are hoping to make a major contribution to the Chinese government’s plans to challenge the US in the field of generative AI. One of the first to join the trend was Wang Huiwei, the co-founder of Meituan, who started the AI start-up Guangnian Zhiwai in February.
However, start-ups face many hurdles in developing generative AI services to match Big Tech firms like Baidu and Alibaba. This includes a lack of access to the same level of talent, tech, and funding as Big Tech companies. Wang Xiaochun, the founder of Sogou, has also gotten in on the game and is taking advantage of his experience in deep learning. Lee Kai-Fu, the former head of Google China and now the head of Sinovation Ventures, has also jumped in on the bandwagon.
ChatGPT is not available in China and since access to uncensored online information is unlikely to be granted, the Chinese internet population of 1 billion is seen as enough support to provide services similar to OpenAI. Start-ups need to be able to access large language models (LLMS) for their AI chatbots, which requires a data trove of its own.
Monetization of these AI services might not come to fruition soon for start-ups and they should focus on industrial-use scenarios rather than LLMs. It will take time, talent, funding and patience for start-ups to catch up to OpenAI’s level or that of leading AI companies.
Meituan is a Chinese e-commerce and retail platform headquartered in Beijing. With over 460 million active users, it is the largest on-demand service provider in China. The platform includes services such as ride-hailing, food delivery, ticket booking, and more.
Wang Huiwei is one of the co-founders of Meituan. He has had a long and successful career in the technology industry and retired from Meituan in 2020. A few months later, he started Guangnian Zhiwai, his current AI start-up with a valuation of $1 billion. He is leading the company into the generative AI space with ambitious plans to challenge OpenAI.
