China’s AI companies are rushing to win over OpenAI users in the country as the ChatGPT creator takes measures to block API traffic from countries and regions that it does not officially support. Why it matters: OpenAI’s latest announcement on API restrictions has been widely interpreted as targeting China, where local enterprises and developers have been using OpenAI’s API to build products or services. On the other hand, the move is being regarded as an excellent opportunity for Chinese AI companies to woo these users. Local AI startups, Zhipu AI, 01.AI, and Baichuan, have also launched exclusive offers for OpenAI users, with Tsinghua University-backed Zhipu being the most generous at time of writing with an offer of 150 million tokens for free. Context: China has over one hundred AI models with parameters beyond 1 billion, according to data disclosed by the National Bureau of Statistics in March.