Backed by several Chinese local governments, Zhipu is regarded as one of the country's leading AI startups—often referred to as one of the "AI tigers." The company drew international attention earlier this year after OpenAI, the U.S. AI giant behind ChatGPT, acknowledged the firm’s rapid progress, particularly in securing government contracts across multiple regions of China.
The launch of GLM-4.5 aligns with a broader push among Chinese AI companies to release increasingly advanced language models. According to a July report from the state-run Xinhua news agency, Chinese firms have released 1,509 large-language models so far this year—more than 40% of the 3,755 models developed globally—making China the world’s most prolific source of LLMs.
Zhipu’s latest model is designed with intelligent agents in mind—software entities that can perform tasks, make decisions, and interact with users or other systems autonomously. These capabilities are increasingly central to the next wave of AI development, particularly in enterprise automation, virtual assistants, and robotics.
The open-source nature of GLM-4.5 may also be a strategic move to drive broader adoption and encourage local developers to build on the platform, potentially cementing Zhipu’s place in China's AI infrastructure. As Beijing continues to prioritize indigenous innovation in core technologies, firms like Zhipu are expected to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of AI deployment across both public and private sectors.
Still, the surge in AI model development also reflects the fierce competition among domestic players, many of whom are racing to match the capabilities of global leaders like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Anthropic. As China deepens its investment in foundational AI technologies, startups such as Zhipu are under increasing pressure to deliver breakthroughs—not just in performance, but in real-world applicability.