Flagship freebie: Baidu’s top AI model Ernie free to use come April

No fooling, Baidu’s LLM rival is gratis on April 1st.

In 2023, Chinese tech giant Baidu launched Ernie, its large language model designed to compete with OpenAI‘s ChatGPT. Baidu has now announced a significant shift in its AI strategy by making Ernie freely available to users.

Key announcement: Baidu, China‘s leading search engine company, will offer its artificial intelligence model Ernie at no cost beginning April 1, 2025, marking a major change in accessibility to the company’s AI technology.

• The decision to make Ernie free represents a strategic move in China’s competitive AI landscape, where multiple companies are vying for market share in the rapidly evolving language model space
• Ernie, which stands for Enhanced Representation through Knowledge Integration, is Baidu’s flagship AI model that can generate text, images, and engage in conversations in both Chinese and English

Market implications: This move could significantly impact the AI ecosystem in China and potentially influence global AI accessibility trends.

• The free availability of Ernie may increase adoption among Chinese developers and businesses, potentially accelerating AI integration across various sectors
• The decision follows similar moves by other tech companies to make their AI models more accessible, though many competitors maintain paid tiers for advanced features

Looking ahead: Baidu’s decision to offer Ernie for free suggests a shift toward prioritizing widespread AI adoption over immediate monetization, though questions remain about potential premium features or enterprise pricing that may be announced closer to the April launch date.