Zhihu, often referred to as mainland China’s version of Quora, recently introduced a new generative artificial intelligence feature called Zhida. This feature, which means “direct response” in Mandarin, uses Zhihu’s extensive content archive to automatically search, summarise, and generate answers to users’ questions.
By launching Zhida, Zhihu has joined other Chinese technology companies in utilizing generative AI to enhance their online services. Generative AI algorithms can create new content such as audio, code, images, text, simulations, and videos. Wang Han, who serves as Zhihu’s chief financial officer, mentioned during the company’s first-quarter earnings call that AI has played a significant role in improving the platform’s operations. This includes tasks like reviewing data, assisting users in creating quality content, and increasing website traffic.
Looking ahead, Wang shared that Zhihu’s investments in AI will prioritize the application layer in 2024. He highlighted the success of the platform’s AI-powered search function, introduced earlier in the year, which has led to double-digit growth in metrics like user retention and engagement for Zhihu’s apps. The progress made in AI technology has helped Zhihu enhance operational efficiency across its existing businesses
