China's AI Race Heats Up as Zhipu and MiniMax Unveil Powerful New Models
Chinese Tech Firms Accelerate AI Arms Race
The Spring Festival holiday didn't slow China's artificial intelligence developers, with two major players dropping significant upgrades today. Zhipu AI unveiled its GLM-5 model while MiniMax introduced version 2.5 of its system - both aiming to push domestic AI capabilities forward.
Zhipu Raises the Bar with GLM-5
Available now on z.ai, GLM-5 represents Zhipu's most advanced offering yet. This versatile model handles everything from casual conversations to complex programming tasks, employing cutting-edge techniques like Sparse Attention (DSA) and Multi-Token Prediction (MTP).
The numbers impress:
- 745 billion parameters (double GLM-4.7's count)
- 78 hidden layers working in concert
- 256 expert modules (with 8 active simultaneously)
- Supports context windows stretching 202K tokens
"We're seeing Chinese firms close the gap rapidly," observes tech analyst Li Wei. "These specs compete directly with Western models that dominated headlines last year."
MiniMax Surprises With Lightning Update
Just over a month since version 2.2 debuted, MiniMax returns with substantial improvements:
- Enhanced programming assistance
- More sophisticated intelligent agents
- Faster response times across applications
The compressed development cycle suggests intense competition among domestic AI labs. "They're iterating at startup speed," notes Shanghai-based developer Chen Yiming, "but with enterprise-level resources."
What This Means for Users
Both upgrades specifically target professional users:
- Developers gain smarter coding assistants
- Businesses access more capable automation tools
- Researchers obtain powerful new platforms for experimentation
The parallel launches underscore China's coordinated push toward AI independence - though challenges remain in matching OpenAI's GPT series for general conversational ability.
Key Points:
- Zhipu GLM-5 doubles down on parameter count and technical sophistication
- MiniMax accelerates its release cadence dramatically
- Programming and automation capabilities take center stage
- Domestic competition drives rapid innovation cycles
