On 16 March 2025, Baidu unveiled its two latest artificial intelligence models: the ERNIE 4.5 multimodal foundation model and the ERNIE X1 reasoning model. These new models represent a significant leap forward in multimodal and reasoning AI while offering solutions that are just a fraction of the cost of competing solutions.
According to Baidu, ERNIE 4.5 outperforms GPT-4.5 across several performance benchmarks while costing only 1% of GPT-4.5’s price. The ERNIE X1 reasoning model delivers performance on par with DeepSeek R1 but at just half the cost. Baidu employed advanced, innovative technologies to develop the models, enhancing their ability to process and interpret both visual and textual content.
Robin Li, CEO of Baidu, said they’ve learned from DeepSeek that making top-performing models open source can significantly accelerate their adoption.
According to the company’s statement, both models will be gradually integrated into Baidu’s product ecosystem, including the Baidu Search Engine and the Wenxiaoyan app. The models’ competitive edge lies not only in pricing—ERNIE 4.5 demonstrates high emotional intelligence, enabling it to understand internet memes and satirical content. In contrast, the X1 model features tool-use capabilities and advanced reasoning functionality.
Sources:
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Baidu, Inc.
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Anthony Ha
3.
Lakshmi Varanasi
