TLDR;
- Alibaba and Tencent have disabled AI chatbot features like image recognition during China’s crucial gaokao exams to prevent cheating.
- The move reflects China’s strategy of promoting AI while enforcing ethical boundaries, especially in education.
- The gaokao’s high stakes make exam integrity essential for maintaining public trust and social mobility.
- The collaboration between tech firms and regulators showcases China’s unique approach to AI governance and compliance.
Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Tencent have temporarily restricted key features of their AI chatbots during the country’s annual college entrance exams.
The Gaokao, running from June 7 to 10, is a high-stakes national exam that determines university placement for millions of students and often shapes their social and economic future.
Suspension to Boost Exam Integrity
Alibaba’s Qwen and Tencent’s Yuanbao chatbots have both disabled functionalities such as image recognition during the examination period. The decision is seen as a proactive attempt to prevent students from using AI tools to gain unfair advantages, particularly through photo-based cheating methods. This measure reflects the growing concern that advanced technologies, while transformative, could also be misused in high-pressure academic settings.
Other AI firms in China, including Moonshot’s Kimi, followed suit by restricting similar capabilities. ByteDance’s Doubao has not disabled its image recognition system entirely but has implemented strict filters to prevent processing of test materials. These coordinated moves suggest a unified effort across China’s tech sector to align with regulatory expectations and uphold the sanctity of the gaokao.
Tech Innovation Meets Ethical Guardrails
The suspension of certain AI features also mirrors China’s broader approach to artificial intelligence regulation. Authorities have been crafting one of the most comprehensive AI governance models in the world, emphasizing both innovation and ethical boundaries. Educational authorities have emphasized that while AI literacy is being added to school curriculums nationwide by 2025, students must not rely on AI-generated content for homework or exams.
This dual approach is indicative of the country’s effort to nurture a generation that understands and utilizes AI responsibly. In this light, the temporary clampdown on AI tools during gaokao is not a step back from AI advancement but a demonstration of China’s emphasis on measured, ethical progress.
Gaokao as a Pillar of Meritocracy
The extraordinary precautions taken during the gaokao period reveal just how vital the exam is within the Chinese education system. Unlike university admissions in Western countries, which often consider a broader array of metrics, the gaokao is often the single determinant for university access in China. This exam is especially critical for students from rural or disadvantaged backgrounds who lack other means to showcase their potential.
Given this context, any suspicion of cheating not only undermines individual merit but threatens the credibility of an entire system designed to promote social mobility. For tech companies like Alibaba and Tencent, taking visible steps to protect the exam’s integrity aligns with both public expectations and state policy.
Industry-Government Collaboration in Real Time
What makes this moment particularly telling is the collaborative nature of the response. The voluntary disabling of AI features by leading firms reflects the growing partnership between government regulators and the private tech sector. While formal regulations provide the framework, corporate compliance ensures rapid and targeted implementation.
This cooperative model allows China to react swiftly to emerging risks without stifling innovation. For example, even as Alibaba restricts some chatbot functions, it continues to expand its open-source AI offerings like the Qwen3 Embedding series, which supports over 100 languages and demonstrates the company’s global ambition in foundational AI research.
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