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Baidu new AI outperforms ChatGPT 4.5 at 1% of the price

PLUS: OpenAI CPO reveals coding will be 99% automated this year

Author

Barsee
17 Mar

Together with

Howdy again. It’s Barsee, and welcome back to AI Valley.

Another day, another AI adventure.

Today’s climb through the Valley reveals:

  • Baidu new AI outperforms ChatGPT 4.5 at 1% of the price

  • OpenAI CPO reveals coding will be 99% automated this year

  • Google prepares Canvas and Veo2 Video Generation for Gemini

  • Plus trending AI tools, posts, and resources

Let’s dive into the Valley of AI…

PEAK OF THE DAY

Baidu new AI outperforms ChatGPT 4.5 at 1% of the price

Baidu has unveiled Ernie 4.5 and Ernie X1, designed to compete with leading models like DeepSeek and OpenAI’s GPT-4.5. These models not only match but surpass GPT-4.5 in advanced reasoning, coding, and multimodal tasks - all at just 1% of the cost.

Image Source: Baidu

Here's what you need to know:

ERNIE 4.5

  • ERNIE 4.5 excels in multimodal understanding, logical reasoning, and contextual awareness, while significantly reducing hallucinations.

  • It processes videos, photos, and text more effectively than previous models and demonstrates high emotional intelligence (EQ), enabling it to understand humor, memes, and even satirical content.

  • Outperforms GPT-4.5 in multiple benchmarks, achieving an average score of 79.6 compared to GPT-4.5’s 79.14.

  • Delivers top-tier performance at just 1% of GPT-4.5’s cost.

ERNIE X1

  • ERNIE X1 is designed for step-by-step problem-solving, capable of formulating plans, evaluating its performance, and adjusting strategies autonomously.

  • It can independently utilize tools for tasks like advanced search, code generation, and image understanding without human intervention.

  • Both models are available for free to individual users through the Ernie Bot platform.

  • Ernie 4.5 is also available via APIs on Baidu AI Cloud's Qianfan platform at a mere $0.55 per million tokens for input data and $2.20 per million tokens for output. Ernie X1 will soon be available on the same platform with even lower pricing.

Why it matters: 

By offering powerful models at a lower cost, Baidu is positioning itself to gain market share and push innovation in AI technology. This move not only strengthens competition in China against DeepSeek and Alibaba but also challenges Western leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic, which offer similar capabilities at higher prices.

The Smart Home disruptor with 200% growth..

Image Source: Ryse

Alexa, Ring, Nest, Apple, Roku…

What do all of these smart home products have in common?

They are must-haves in homes everywhere, and now there’s one more to add to the list…

And here’s why investors are taking notice:

  • $10M+ in revenue and growing 200% year-over-year

  • In 127 Best Buy locations, with Home Depot launching in 2025

  • 10+ patents protecting industry-leading technology

RYSE is on track to be the next big name in smart home automation—and you can invest at $1.90/share before their next wave of expansion.

*This is sponsored

VALLEY VIEW

Weil predicts that 2025 will mark a historic shift in AI's capabilities: "I think this is the year that, at least by competitive coding benchmarks, AI becomes better than humans at competitive coding forever. In the same way that computers passed humans at multiplying 70 years ago and AI passed humans at chess 15 years ago. This is the year that AI gets better than humans at programming forever... and there's no going back."

Google is gearing up for its next big Gemini update, with two exciting features in development. First is Canvas, a tool for creating code-based documents, similar to ChatGPT, launching exclusively on Gemini 2.0 Flash. A new Canvas button will join the Composer menu. Even more thrilling, Gemini is preparing for video generation using Veo2, Google’s top-tier model, making Gemini one of the few chat products with native video creation.

While VC giants like Tencent and Alibaba are circling, DeepSeek is holding its ground. Founder Liang Wenfeng, who owns 84% of the company, is funding operations through his hedge fund, High-Flyer. But rising costs and High-Flyer’s recent struggles could make outside funding tempting.

The AI code editor Cursor has revealed in its latest update log (version 0.47.5) that it's preparing for Anthropic's upcoming "Claude 3.7 Sonnet Max" model. While Anthropic hasn't officially announced the model yet, it is anticipated to expand on Claude 3.7 Sonnet with deeper reasoning and enhanced coding capabilities.

Users on X and Reddit have recently pointed out that Google's latest experimental model, Gemini 2.0 Flash, can remove watermarks from images from well-known stock photo sites like Getty Images. The model’s text-to-image feature has also drawn attention for its limited guardrails, allowing users to generate images of celebrities and other copyrighted content. These findings have raised concerns about potential copyright misuse.

TRENDING TOOLS

  • Intercom > AI agent that integrates with any help desk to deliver instant support across every channel. *

  • BrowserAgent > Browser-based AI agents.

  • No Cap > World's first AI angel investor.

  • Tavus > Creates lifelike digital twins that see, hear, and interact naturally for real-time video interactions.

  • Beeble > Transforms 2D footage into 3D for enhanced virtual lighting and effects editing.

THINK PIECES / BRAIN BOOST

VALLEY GEMS

1/ New Gemini 2 is removing watermark from images.

2/ Photoshop vs Google Flash 2.0 experimental. Lets see who wins.

3/ FSD is being tested with the water cup challenge. The FSD is getting better and better.

4/ This looks pretty scary. Unitree G1 team goes patrolling on the street with its robo dog and humanoid robot.

SUNSET IN THE VALLEY

Thank you for reading today’s edition. That’s all for today’s issue.

💡 Help me get better and suggest new ideas at [email protected] or @heyBarsee

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