Baidu.com (NASDAQ:BIDU)'s chatbot has climbed to the top of Apple's App Store popularity chart in China after being released to the public on Thursday.
The search engine giant’s bot, dubbed ‘Ernie,’ was published after China's CyberSpace Administration approved a host of artificial intelligence (AI) programs this week, amid aims to solidify China’s place in the heated AI race, sparked by the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT late last year.
“We are thrilled to share that Ernie Bot is now fully open to the general public,” Baidu said on Thursday.
Ernie, alongside bots from the likes of SenseTime Group, is among the first to be made publicly available in China, with international rivals such as ChatGPT banned.
Baidu’s bot was first launched to a limited group in March, though chief executive Robin Li tipped its release to a wider audience should aid feedback and improve future models.
China unveiled regulation for generative AI in July, becoming the first nation to do so.
Baidu shares jumped over 2% to HK$139.40.