(Yicai Global) June 14 -- Chinese developers of large language models are catching up with international leaders quicker than expected, the founder of 360 Security Technology said when the antivirus software maker debuted its latest ChatGPT-like chatbot.

"Domestic LLMs are already on a par with GPT-3.5 and they are chasing GPT-4 at a rate beyond imagination," Zhou Hongyi said at a conference yesterday as the Beijing-based firm released the chatbot called 360 Zhinao 4.0.

This year, several Chinese companies, including Baidu, have released artificial intelligence models to challenge OpenAI's ChatGPT which got its fourth version in March. Even 360 Security demonstrated AI-generated dialogue for the first time in late March. However, the chatbot failed to give the right answer to questions many times on the stage. Zhou explained that Chinese LLMs are two to three years behind ChatGPT-4.

The 360 Zhinao 4.0 can process text, pictures, speech, and videos, and it has been integrated into various 360 internet products such as the 360 Browser, search engine, and security software, the chairman added.

The company also took the opportunity to reveal over 200 digital humans, including famous historical characters, stars, and fictional characters. The goal is to develop digital humans that can generate sound and video and have long-term memory, per Zhou.

LLMs will have a 10-year dividend period, and the key to winning the competition lies in combining AI capabilities with specific business scenarios to build more user applications, Zhou said yesterday.

Shares of 360 Security [SHA:601360] were down 1.6 percent at CNY15.14 (USD2.10) as of noon after rising by 5.5 percent yesterday following the product release.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Emmi Laine