When "showing the mode...
When "showing the model" is harder than "training the model"
On November 14, 2018, under the guidance of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Beijing Municipal Committee and Government, a new type of research institute was established – the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence (BAAI) – with the aim of venturing into the "uncharted territory" of artificial intelligence. It brought together top universities such as Peking University, Tsinghua University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, as well as leading companies including Baidu, Xiaomi, and ByteDance.
Within less than three years of its founding, in 2021, it released the "Wu Dao 2.0" large model, which caused a global sensation and became the world's largest AI model at that time. Today, as large language models have become a phenomenal trend, BAAI has already moved beyond "Wu Dao" to "Wu Jie," turning its sights to the more cutting‑edge "world model" and beginning to explore the deep integration of AI with the physical world and the life sciences.
Core mission: exploring the "uncharted territory" and serving as the "driving force" of AI innovation
BAAI's positioning is not about following, but about tackling the most fundamental problems and the most critical challenges. As a new type of research institute, it aspires to be the source of global AI academic thought, foundational theory, top talent, corporate innovation, and development policy. It has developed a unique "BAAI model" – concentrating resources to accomplish major undertakings, empowering young talent to take on leadership roles, and fostering open‑source ecosystems to nurture innovation.
Research landscape: fr...
Research landscape: from "Wu Dao" to "Wu Jie" – leading at the frontier across the board
BAAI's research has always stood at the forefront of the AI wave, and its strategic layout clearly reflects the evolution of AI technology.
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Wu Dao series: ushering in the era of large models in China
BAAI was one of the first research institutions in China to systematically pursue large models. Its "Wu Dao" series was a significant milestone, especially Wu Dao 2.0, which had 1.75 trillion parameters – at the time the world's largest trillion‑parameter model – demonstrating China's ambition in the field of ultra‑large‑scale AI models.
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Wu Jie series: leading the new wave of "world models"
As language models bec...
As language models became a red ocean, BAAI took the lead in turning toward building "world models," enabling AI not only to understand language but also to grasp the laws of the physical world. Its released achievements include:
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Wu Jie·Emu3.5: a multimodal world large model that evolves from "predicting the next token" to "predicting the next state."
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Wu Jie·Physis‑v0.1: positioned as a general‑purpose world foundation model, aimed at building the foundational technical system for AI physical perception and reasoning.
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Wu Jie·RoboBrain Orca: a multimodal representation world model jointly proposed with the Institute of Automation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, designed to break through the generalisation bottleneck of embodied intelligence.
In addition, BAAI also...
In addition, BAAI also released the industry's first cardiac MRI multimodal reasoning diagnostic agent (BAAI Cardiac Agent), which standardises and replicates top‑tier imaging diagnostic capabilities through AI technology.
Building an open and collaborative innovation ecosystem
BAAI understands that the future of AI lies in open collaboration, and has thus built a comprehensive ecosystem:
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BAAI Conference: now in its seventh consecutive year, this "insider event of AI" brings together the world's leading researchers, with over 1,000 international AI experts, including 12 Turing Award laureates, participating.
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BAAI Community: a professional and international academic platform that has attracted nearly 190,000 AI practitioners and has become an important source of ideas in China's AI field.
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BAAI Scholar Program: ...
BAAI Scholar Program: supports 100 outstanding scholars each year to pursue exploratory research, allowing young scientists to take on leading roles in major initiatives.
In terms of open‑source infrastructure, BAAI has developed the FlagOS system, which can quickly adapt to multiple domestic and international AI chips, greatly advancing the development of China's domestic AI computing ecosystem.
International vision and talent hub
BAAI is committed to becoming a hub for global AI innovation and has established exchange and collaboration relationships with top international institutions such as Canada's Mila Institute, the UK's Turing Institute, and the US's Allen Institute for AI. At the same time, it has attracted 94 world‑class AI scientists and a full‑time research and engineering team of over 160 people.
Summary
The Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence (BAAI) is more like an ambitious "pathfinder." From the "Wu Dao" large models to the "Wu Jie" world models, it has always been challenging the most cutting‑edge problems. Through its unique "BAAI model," it combines top talent, open ecosystems, and major research projects, not only producing world‑class scientific achievements but also cultivating fertile ground for the development of AI in China. If you want to know where the next wave of AI is heading, BAAI is likely already there.