Ernie Bot and ChatGPT—are set to become free to use, intensifying competition in the AI market. The move, widely seen as a response to DeepSeek's growing influence, is expected to trigger a new wave of AI price wars.

Baidu, China’s largest internet search company, announced that it will offer its AI chatbot Ernie Bot for free starting April 1, as competition in the AI sector heats up. The AI service will be accessible at no cost to all users on both desktop and mobile platforms,

Chinese tech firm Baidu said it would offer access to its flagship artificial intelligence chatbot, Ernie Bot, for free starting April 1. The chatbot, first released just a few months after OpenAI’s ChatGPT,