Baidu is making a strategic move to strengthen its position in China’s artificial intelligence race by making its chatbot, Ernie Bot, free to all users starting April 1.
The decision signals a shift in the company’s approach as it grapples with intensifying competition from emerging players like DeepSeek and ByteDance’s Doubao.
Unlike its earlier strategy of monetising AI services through subscription plans, Baidu is now prioritising mass adoption to compete with rivals that have gained traction by offering free, high-performance AI models.
The move also comes at a time when AI development costs are falling, allowing companies to expand access without significantly impacting profitability.
Baidu has been a frontrunner in China’s AI market since OpenAI launched ChatGPT, but its adoption rates have lagged behind competitors.
The company is betting that free access to Ernie Bot will boost its user base and strengthen its ecosystem as AI applications become central to digital services in China.
Ernie Bot falls behind rivals
Despite launching one of China’s first large language models, Baidu has faced challenges in establishing Ernie Bot as a dominant player.
Data from AI product tracker Aicpb.com shows that Baidu’s AI chatbot trails behind newer entrants like DeepSeek and ByteDance’s Doubao in terms of user engagement and adoption.
DeepSeek, a Beijing-based startup, has positioned itself as a strong competitor by offering an AI chatbot with performance comparable to OpenAI’s GPT-4 at a lower operational cost.
ByteDance, known for its success with TikTok, has also integrated AI into its ecosystem, giving it an edge in attracting users.
Baidu initially introduced premium features powered by Ernie 4.0 at a monthly fee of 59.9 yuan ($8.18), but the strategy failed to drive widespread adoption.
With AI tools increasingly becoming a standard feature in digital services, Baidu is shifting its focus from monetisation to user acquisition, hoping to capture a larger market share before competitors solidify their dominance.
AI competition heats up
The race to dominate China’s AI sector has entered a new phase, with major companies prioritising accessibility over direct monetisation.
Offering AI chatbots for free has become a common strategy as firms seek to expand their user base and integrate AI into their broader product ecosystems.
For Baidu, making Ernie Bot freely available aligns with its broader AI ambitions.
The company has been investing heavily in AI-driven search and cloud computing, with Ernie 4.0 positioned as a key component in its digital transformation strategy.
By increasing accessibility, Baidu aims to drive engagement and create new opportunities for monetisation through its wider range of AI-powered services.
Baidu’s decision also comes as the Chinese government continues to push for homegrown AI advancements to reduce reliance on Western technology.
With Beijing encouraging AI innovation, companies like Baidu, ByteDance, and DeepSeek are racing to establish their dominance in the domestic market before expanding globally.
AI business models shift
Baidu’s move to make Ernie Bot free reflects a broader change in how AI companies approach business models.
While early AI adoption was marked by paid access to premium features, the industry is now shifting towards monetising AI through enterprise solutions, advertising, and data-driven services.
Along with making Ernie Bot free, Baidu has announced an advanced search function that integrates AI-driven reasoning capabilities, which will also be freely available from April 1.
The feature is designed to enhance search accuracy and provide expert-level responses, reinforcing Baidu’s position as a leader in AI-powered search technology.
As competition intensifies, Baidu’s ability to scale its AI services and integrate them into its broader ecosystem will determine its success in China’s evolving AI market.
While making Ernie Bot free may boost user numbers, the real challenge will be turning AI adoption into long-term business growth in an increasingly crowded field.
The post Baidu makes ‘Ernie Bot’ free from April 1 as AI competition intensifies in China appeared first on Invezz