两家中国主要 AI 企业在同一时期向超过一亿四千万月活用户发布新进展，但其发展轨迹出现显著分化。一端是 DeepSeek 持续投入高性能模型竞赛，在二十天内与 GPT 5.1、Gemini 3 Pro、Claude Opus 4.5、Kimi K2 等密集发布同场竞争；另一端是 ByteDance 将重点转向系统级渗透，将 Doubao 融入手机操作系统，实现跨应用代理控制。DeepSeek 以开源、低算力占用为核心策略，因为芯片供应受限，使模型训练与推理成本显著低于西方同类实验室。ByteDance 则在输入法、系统代理等入口扩张，使其 AI 能在手机层面执行任务，形成与应用性能无关的稳定用户基础。
DeepSeek 发布 V3.2 与 V3.2-Speciale，作为九月版本的高效优化迭代，并声称在国际数学奥林匹克级别题目上达到或超过 GPT 5 与 Gemini 3。尽管更新替代了市场期待的 R2，这一版本仍因数学、推理、代码指标引发行业关注。密集的模型军备竞赛导致模型间差异趋于细微，但 DeepSeek 在算力受限条件下持续强调效率，使其在中国开源阵列中与 Zhipu、Minimax、Moonshot 等形成同类趋势，同时与 Baidu、Tencent 的应用路线构成对照。
ByteDance 的策略在操作系统层面推进更彻底。其 Doubao 输入法和系统级 AI 代理可访问任意应用，并与 ZTE 合作预装于 Nubia M153（3499 RMB）。代理可控制 Tesla 应用、比价电商、处理相册图像，但遭遇 Tencent 阻断：使用 Doubao 访问 WeChat 的用户被暂时封禁，凸显生态冲突的控制边界。整体上，中国 AI 企业普遍避免美式“算力囤积”路径，因芯片制裁与资本规模不足，促使行业整体向效率型或应用型分化。
China’s two leading AI firms reached over 140 million monthly users yet diverged sharply in strategic direction. DeepSeek continues competing in the high-performance model race, releasing updates within the same twenty-day window as GPT 5.1, Gemini 3 Pro, Claude Opus 4.5, and Kimi K2. ByteDance instead expands system-level integration by embedding Doubao into smartphone operating systems to perform cross-app agentic tasks. DeepSeek’s core advantage lies in open-weight efficiency driven by chip scarcity, reducing training and inference costs relative to Western labs, while ByteDance focuses on input-method entry points and OS-level control, building a user base minimally dependent on model benchmarks.
DeepSeek’s V3.2 and V3.2-Speciale iterate on the September release with efficiency upgrades and claims of International Mathematical Olympiad-level problem-solving, matching or surpassing GPT 5 and Gemini 3 in reasoning and coding tests. Although this substituted for the anticipated R2, the model still drew attention due to its quantitative performance. The accelerating model arms race has reduced practical differences between successive releases, but DeepSeek’s efficiency-first strategy aligns it with smaller open-source startups such as Zhipu, Minimax, and Moonshot, standing in contrast to application-driven strategies from Baidu and Tencent.
ByteDance advances more aggressively at the operating-system layer. Its Doubao Input Method and system-embedded AI agent can access any application and will ship preinstalled on ZTE’s Nubia M153 priced at 3,499 RMB (~$500). Demonstrated capabilities include controlling Tesla’s app, performing cross-platform price searches, and AI-enhancing photos. The agent was blocked by WeChat, whose 1.4-billion-user ecosystem suspended accounts that accessed it through Doubao, illustrating hard limits in China’s platform competition. Across the sector, Chinese AI firms collectively avoid the U.S.-style compute-hoarding strategy due to chip sanctions and limited capital, reinforcing a bifurcation toward efficiency-driven or application-centric development.