Chinese Open-Source AI Model Ranks Fifth on Usage Platform, Trails Top U.S. System on Intelligence Tests

ai released its GLM-5.2 model last month, and the open-source large language model quickly earned recognition as the most intelligent free option available. ai stated that the model beats OpenAI's GPT-5.5 on a benchmark for software engineering tasks.

Artificial Analysis recorded a slight shortfall against GPT-5.5 on its own intelligence metrics.

GLM-5.2 now sits fifth among models on OpenRouter, a platform that tracks a small slice of overall use. DeepSeek's latest model holds the top spot there with more than double the usage of any rival, and seven of the ten most-used models on the service come from Chinese companies. The January 2025 release of DeepSeek's R1 produced a sharper response.

That open-source model, available for free local download, was reported to match leading U.S. systems and erased a trillion dollars from U.S. tech company values. Lawmakers then proposed barring the model from government devices.

Chinese developers release models that users can run locally without charge. Most U.S. companies keep models in the cloud, charge for access, and limit visibility into their design. A UK software developer reported that a local Z.ai model completed the same task 30 percent slower than an OpenAI cloud model but incurred no cost.

Serge Belongie at the University of Copenhagen noted that Silicon Valley has traditionally led in innovation while Chinese firms scale effectively, and he highlighted the new pressure from aggressive open-source releases. Mikhail Belkin at the University of California, San Diego, said Chinese open-source models match the best U.S. models from six to nine months earlier and offer greater stability because they cannot be withdrawn remotely.

David Shrier at Imperial College London said the company that leads in AI could capture a 60-trillion-pound market. Philip Torr at the University of Oxford warned that U.S. export controls risk pushing other countries to build independent systems, citing Huawei's response to earlier restrictions.