Chinese AI: A Guide to Models, Chatbots and Tools
Chinese AI refers to artificial intelligence models and tools developed by Chinese companies and research teams. It includes chat assistants, coding tools, and systems that generate images, video, audio and 3D assets. Many of these products also support English and other languages.
DeepSeek, Alibaba’s Qwen and Moonshot AI’s Kimi are useful starting points for conversation, coding and knowledge work. Other names, including GLM, ERNIE, Doubao, MiniMax and Kling, add further choices for developers and creators.
The right starting point depends on what you want to finish. A chat app suits an everyday question or rewrite. An office agent is more relevant when you need a document or spreadsheet. A creative service provides image or video controls, while an API or downloadable model lets developers build their own applications.
ChinaAI is an independent English-language publication, unaffiliated with these providers. Our detailed guides focus on DeepSeek, Qwen and Kimi; the wider overview below helps you understand where other Chinese AI products fit.
Chinese AI models and tools at a glance
| Product or family | Developer | Main uses |
|---|---|---|
| DeepSeek | DeepSeek | Chat, reasoning, coding and model APIs |
| Qwen | Alibaba | Chat, coding, multimodal models and creative APIs |
| Kimi | Moonshot AI | Research, documents, spreadsheets, presentations and coding |
| GLM | Z.ai | Language and vision models, coding and agents |
| ERNIE | Baidu | AI assistant and model development platforms |
| Doubao | ByteDance | Consumer AI assistant |
| Seedream and Seedance | ByteDance | Image and video generation models |
| MiniMax | MiniMax | Language, coding, video, speech and music products |
| Kling AI | Kuaishou | Image and video creation |
| Hunyuan / Hy | Tencent | Language, image, video and 3D model families |
| Wan | Alibaba | Image and video generation |
These names describe different layers of a product. A model supplies capabilities; an app adds the interface, file handling and tools; a developer platform exposes services to software. That distinction explains why a feature available through one route may be absent from another product using the same brand.
Choose Chinese AI by the work you need to finish
Questions, explanations and writing
For an explanation, a rewrite or a discussion of code, start with DeepSeek’s official chat. A conversational interface is a practical default when you can finish the task by asking questions and refining the answer, without setting up developer tools. State the question, audience and intended output: for example, an email revision or a structured outline.
Change tools when the deliverable changes. Choose Kimi’s document tools when you need a formatted file to continue editing; choose a downloadable Qwen model when running the assistant on your own hardware is a requirement.
Research, documents and office files
Choose Kimi Deep Research when the job calls for a report that brings together evidence from several sources: its documented workflow includes research planning and reports with citations. Qwen Deep Research provides another research route. For a single explanation or a quick rewrite, begin in normal chat; a longer research workflow is more useful when gathering and connecting evidence is part of the task.
When the required result is an editable file, start with Kimi Docs for a Word document, Kimi Sheets for an Excel workbook, or Kimi Slides for a presentation. Moonshot’s office-tool documentation describes file output and continued editing. Include the source material and intended format in your request. For example, ask for a .xlsx workbook when you need to work with cells and sheets afterward; a table displayed in chat is a different deliverable.
Coding and software development
Use chat for an explanation of a function or advice about an error. For changes inside an existing project, Qwen Code is a practical starting point: its documentation describes reading a codebase, editing files and running commands from a terminal. Kimi Code is another option, with a CLI and VS Code extension documented in Kimi’s product overview. Choose the agent that fits the environment in which you already develop, and review its proposed changes and command permissions.
If you are adding AI responses to a website or application, choose a developer API instead of a coding-agent interface. Your application needs a model endpoint and the appropriate tools; an agent that edits your repository serves a different job. Match the service to your project’s languages, tool support and deployment requirements. A general coding claim does not settle those practical differences.
Images, video, audio and 3D
Choose an image-generation or editing service when you need a still visual: Qwen image generation is one starting point, while ByteDance’s Seedream provides another model family for image work. Alibaba Cloud’s model catalog separates generation from image and video understanding. A vision model that describes a picture serves a different purpose from a tool that creates or edits it. For narration or music, look at MiniMax’s dedicated audio products.
For a clip made from a written scene or an existing picture, explore Wan’s video workflows. Start with text-to-video for a scene described in words, or image-to-video when a supplied image should guide the result. If you need to control how a shot starts and ends, look for a model with first-and-last-frame input. Kling and Seedance provide further video options. Our guide to Qwen and Alibaba video-generation routes explains the distinction between the assistant, developer services and video models.
For a textured 3D object, start with Tencent’s Hunyuan3D, which documents image-to-shape and texture-generation components. This route is relevant when the next step is working with a 3D asset, such as an object for a game or design scene. A finished video is a different output, so choose according to what your next editing tool needs.
DeepSeek, Qwen and Kimi: where to start
DeepSeek: everyday questions, reasoning and developer access
DeepSeek offers a web and mobile assistant alongside a separate developer platform. It is a practical place to begin when you want to ask questions, work through a problem, improve a piece of writing or discuss code through a conversational interface. Its official app page also describes web search and file upload.
For software projects, the DeepSeek API documentation explains how applications can call its models through compatible SDKs. This route is useful for adding model responses to a website, internal tool or coding workflow. DeepSeek also offers Harness as a separate desktop product, so its consumer chat, API and desktop routes should be considered individually.
Use our DeepSeek guide for an introduction to these products and their official entry points.
Qwen: a broad choice of models, sizes and media capabilities
Qwen is Alibaba’s assistant and model ecosystem. Its consumer chat offers an entry point for personal use, while developers can choose separate hosted services or downloadable models. The official model repository documents differently sized language models and ways to run them through compatible software.
Qwen is worth exploring when your needs span several types of work: text, code, image understanding or media creation. Alibaba Cloud’s Model Studio catalog separates text models, image and video understanding, image and video generation, and audio services. Choose the model for the specific job. For example, a vision model that explains a photograph serves a different purpose from an image generator.
Alibaba’s Wan video models have their own names and documentation. Keep those distinctions when choosing a service, downloading a model or comparing costs. Our Qwen guide explains the main access routes.
Kimi: research and work that ends in a usable file
Kimi is Moonshot AI’s assistant for conversation, research and agent workflows. Its official overview covers web search, file handling, research, coding and tools that can carry out tasks across multiple steps.
Its office products are particularly relevant when your goal is a finished file. Kimi Docs and Sheets support document and spreadsheet workflows, while Kimi Slides is designed for presentations.
For example, someone preparing a proposal may need a formatted document they can revise in Word; someone organizing business data may need an Excel workbook. Naming that deliverable helps you choose the appropriate tool.
Kimi also has a separate developer API and Kimi Code product. Begin with our Kimi guide to find the route that matches your work.
Other Chinese AI companies and tools
Z.ai and GLM
Z.ai develops the GLM model family. Its developer documentation covers language and multimodal models, coding, agents, web search and image generation.
GLM belongs on a developer’s shortlist when the application needs model responses, tool use or coding capabilities. Select the exact model and service before comparing its features or cost with another provider.
Tencent: Hunyuan and Hy
Tencent’s official Hunyuan repositories cover several families, including Hy language models, HunyuanImage, HunyuanVideo and Hunyuan3D. Choose the component for the task: language models for text and agent applications, image or video models for visual generation, and 3D models for assets with shape and texture.
The 3D route is a useful reason to explore this ecosystem. The Hunyuan3D repository describes separate shape and texture stages, publishes model resources, and links to Tencent’s hosted 3D service. The linked hosted service requires sign-in; it provides a route to explore 3D creation without installing the released model. For a custom pipeline, read the specific repository’s hardware requirements and licence before choosing local deployment. The hosted service and a downloaded model have their own capabilities and terms.
Baidu ERNIE
ERNIE is Baidu’s AI assistant and model ecosystem. Baidu’s official ERNIE resources distinguish ERNIE Bot from Baidu AI Studio and the Qianfan model platform.
The assistant is the relevant starting point for a conversational experience; the development platforms serve a different purpose for people building or deploying AI applications.
ByteDance: Doubao, Seedream and Seedance
Doubao is ByteDance’s consumer AI assistant. ByteDance’s wider Seed model portfolio includes Seedream for images and Seedance for video, alongside other model research and services. These names help you distinguish an assistant from the model behind a creative feature.
If you want to create visual content, look for the app or developer service that supplies the required Seedream or Seedance model. The available input formats, editing options and billing belong to that service. ByteDance’s official Seed site links to creative and developer products, including Dreamina and BytePlus.
Alibaba Wan: image and video generation
Wan is Alibaba’s creative model family, with hosted image-generation and editing models as well as video-generation workflows. For video, the practical choice is the input you already have: a written scene, a starting image, first and last frames, or reference material. Choose a model that explicitly supports that input.
Use the Wan website for its hosted creative interface, or Alibaba Cloud Model Studio when you need to integrate generation into software. For a pipeline you operate yourself, the official Wan2.2 repository provides a documented downloadable release with code and weights. Treat that release separately from the models offered by the website or API: version, hardware needs, available controls and billing can differ.
MiniMax
MiniMax develops language and coding models alongside video, speech and music systems. This makes it relevant to projects that combine several outputs, such as a script, narration and visual content.
Choose its language, video or audio product according to the material you need to produce; the MiniMax name alone does not identify a single app or billing arrangement.
Kling AI
Kling AI is Kuaishou’s creative AI service for image and video work. Kuaishou’s official product announcement identifies its English-language web portal as klingai.com.
It is a relevant starting point when the deliverable is visual content rather than a written answer. Choose the generation workflow and controls that match the scene or sequence you want to create.
How to access Chinese AI: apps, APIs and local models
Use an official website or app
This is the simplest route for conversation and interactive work. Open the provider’s official service, sign in if required, and choose the relevant tool.
Our official chat directory links to DeepSeek, Qwen and Kimi. Your account and conversation are managed by the provider you open.
Connect an API to your software
An API lets an application send requests to a hosted model. You choose a provider and model, create the required credentials and pay under that service’s billing rules. DeepSeek, Kimi, Alibaba Cloud and Z.ai publish developer documentation; their model catalogs, tools and supported request formats differ.
Start with our DeepSeek API, Qwen API or Kimi API guide. Use the provider’s current documentation for the exact endpoint, model name and supported features.
Compatibility with a familiar SDK can simplify integration, but provider-specific options still matter. See, for example, Kimi’s API overview.
Run a downloadable model yourself
Some providers release model weights: the learned parameters needed to run a model with compatible software. Qwen publishes models in different sizes, and DeepSeek’s official releases include downloadable models and smaller distilled variants.
For local language-model use, Qwen is a practical starting point because its official repository documents different model sizes and CPU/GPU runtime options. Begin with a checkpoint that fits your available memory and input length. A smaller model can be more realistic for a personal computer than a flagship release. Choose a hosted app or API when you want the provider to operate the model and handle the infrastructure.
Our local Qwen guide explains the setup. You also supply the runtime and any search, file-processing or other tools that your workflow requires.
Which Chinese AI tools are free?
Several services offer a free starting point, but free access applies to a particular product and allowance.
- DeepSeek advertises its consumer app as free. Its developer platform is a separate service.
- Qwen describes its consumer assistant as free to use. Model APIs and other services have their own billing.
- Kimi has free access alongside paid memberships. Its official usage guidance distinguishes free users from subscribers and describes optional extra usage.
For a paid decision, identify what is being metered. An app subscription pays for a plan and its allowance. A model API can charge for input, output and additional tools. Creative services may use generation credits. A model you run yourself uses your hardware or hosting resources, even when the weights are available without a download fee.
Our DeepSeek pricing, Qwen pricing and Kimi pricing guides explain those different cost structures. Use the relevant official price page and account terms when choosing a paid service.
Privacy, licences and commercial use
Choose the service and its data terms together. For a hosted app or API, review how the operator handles prompts and files, including retention, model training and deletion. A service supplied through a third-party host has that host’s policies as well. For work documents or customer information, use an arrangement approved for that data.
Commercial permission also depends on the route. For example, Qwen’s consumer service agreement limits that service to private, non-commercial use. Its API services and downloadable models have separate agreements or licences. For business work, confirm that the agreement or licence for your chosen app, API or downloadable release permits the intended use.
Self-hosting can give you greater control over where a model runs and how inputs are handled. That control depends on your setup: external search, cloud fallback and connected tools can still send information elsewhere. A downloadable model’s licence remains relevant to commercial use, modification and redistribution.
Chinese AI questions, answered
Can Chinese AI work in English?
Yes. Several model families support English, including Qwen’s multilingual models and the English-and-Chinese models listed in Z.ai’s documentation.
Language support in a model and the language of an app’s interface are separate considerations, so choose a product you can comfortably navigate as well as one suited to your writing or subject matter.
Can I use Chinese AI outside China?
Several providers offer international-facing products, including English websites, documentation and membership options. Kimi, for example, documents international membership plans.
Availability still depends on the service, country, account requirements and payment method. Follow the provider’s current registration and supported-region information rather than assuming every product is available everywhere.
Are Chinese AI models open source?
Some releases provide downloadable weights; others are available through hosted services. The licence of the exact release determines what you can do with it.
Open weights and fully open-source AI also describe different levels of access: the Open Source Initiative’s definition includes code and data information as well as model parameters. A free chat account provides access to a service, not ownership of the model.
Are DeepSeek, Qwen and Kimi alternatives to ChatGPT?
Yes, they are options to consider for conversational AI and related work. Choose according to the complete task: the tools you need, the files you must receive, the access route and the applicable cost and terms.
Our Chinese AI comparison guide explains the differences between DeepSeek, Qwen and Kimi in more detail.
Find your starting point
Choose one concrete task before opening a service: a question to answer, a document to prepare, a coding job or a visual to create. Then choose the product designed for that result.
For everyday chat, open a provider through the official chat directory. For a file, creative project or software integration, use the relevant guide above to select the tool, format and access route.