Central Asia has no faith in Doubao.
AI Still Has to Be Free
"AI Still Has to Be Free"
Over the May holiday I traveled far, intending to escape AI. Instead I discovered that both me and the Central Asian people are completely surrounded by it — Chinese tourists passing by had Doubao playing aloud on their phones. I know exactly how you feel. What follows is my most direct, most unvarnished, most piercing, most straight-to-the-point, most no-nonsense, most key-point-only AI observation from Central Asia, guaranteed sponsor-free:
1. At a mosque in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, a souvenir vendor told me his favorite product was Claude. "Twenty is not expensive." I nearly teared up — I also love Claude, so could you please stop banning me? He added that he loved China. When I asked why, he said Chinese technology is great, like robotaxis. I asked if they had autonomous driving here too. He said: "Soon." Unfortunately, he didn't use any Chinese AI products and only knew DeepSeek by name — Chinese AI companies should reflect on why their products haven't spread across Central Asia like electric vehicles have.
Stumbled upon Uzbekistan's AI development plan
2. On my second day in Tashkent I took a 50-kilometer taxi to the Solar Furnace, one of the largest solar energy experimental facilities in human history, a classic example of Soviet architecture that looked exactly like the Red Coast Base from The Three-Body Problem.
A Japanese auntie traveling with us said ChatGPT had recommended the Solar Furnace. So despite the 315 crackdown, GEO still needs to be done.
Our guide was still a freshman in college. He said he used ChatGPT for homework. The Japanese auntie immediately warned him: "Don't use AI when you're young," adding something about AI devouring humanity. Damn, why are Japanese people so two-faced about AI, just wanting to keep it for themselves 😠
3. At the Hazrati Imam Mosque, supposedly home to the world's oldest Quran (though Doubao said it had been moved to the National Library), watching crowds of people praying devoutly, I couldn't help thinking of the so-called Amen Ring marketed for Christian prayer. Some Muslim entrepreneur really ought to make a Muslim Ring — they're a bit too devout here.
For instance, halfway back from the Solar Furnace, our driver suddenly stopped and insisted I call another car because he had to go pray...
As for AI religious products, I've never figured this out: if I pray using AI hardware, can God still bless me? Will the Pope eventually declare that worshipping with AI means you can't go to heaven?
4. During customs crossing from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan, the guy ahead of me sent a voice message to Doubao: "If I bring excess cigarettes into Tashkent, will my luggage get confiscated?"
My god, sir, you're asking Doubao about this too? In a while when Skynet goes live, this is basically turning yourself in. Officer, right this way 😭
I deeply suspect people have already asked Doubao how to get away with crimes after committing them. I suggest the police cooperate with relevant AI companies.
5. People in Kazakhstan love watching short dramas on the subway — AI-generated ones, with Chinese construction site themes. Are people in the Third World only going to get fed slop from now on? Seedance 2.0, you're a bit too evil.
6. Domestic large language models are somewhat unbeatable for travel scenarios — I completely stopped needing Google Translate.
At the Ark of Bukhara, for example, I just took a photo, no need to even ask a question, and Doubao would explain it directly.
I could also photograph menus for Doubao to translate. Probably because of context, it was much better than when I used Google Translate in Japan.
Of course, Qwen worked just as well for menus.
After eating, worried the restaurant might overcharge me, I could also send the bill for checking.
All I can say is image recognition is real demand.
7. No wonder Justin Sun said Doubao is the most cognitively capable person an ordinary person will ever encounter in their lifetime.
But some influencer also said children who use Doubao versus those who use Claude or ChatGPT will have different futures. So will Uzbekistani kids end up outperforming Haidian Doubao kids?
We'll see.
8. But regrettably, neither Doubao nor Qwen supports Russian or Uzbek for simultaneous interpretation, so for face-to-face conversation I still had to use Google Translate.
9. The journey to the Aral Sea was extraordinarily long — six hours of struggling through directionless desert with no other vehicles in sight.
Stopped for a break in Muzdakhan, even Google Maps couldn't show the road to the Aral Sea. On a whim I asked Qwen if it could call me a taxi, and it happily agreed 👍
Though it eventually replied that taxi services were only available in mainland China, the courage was admirable. To do AI, you must first dare to dream.
Doubao also couldn't see the Aral Sea — no network nearby. My assessment: the boundaries of AI need to be expanded by great Chinese infrastructure 😭
10. Since my last review of Looki, it's been gathering dust in my drawer. This trip provided the perfect use case: in the desert you can wear short sleeves, so it magnetically attaches to clothing; with no one around, no one would bump my Looki off.
Even so, while using the bathroom I nearly dropped Looki in. I estimate that if I ever visit Paris, any random person on the street could swipe it.
Behold Looki's AI-edited vlog for me:
All I can say is, somewhat humorous. Fine, at least it recognized I went to the Aral Sea.
11. Both Doubao and Qwen work well for exhibition exploration.
At the Nukus Museum of Art, I photographed works on the spot and sent them to Doubao and Qwen for interpretation.
The current problem is that artist names beside paintings are too small; if my camera doesn't capture them clearly, the models just make things up. Turns out the camera is the physical AI engine.
I estimate that after this trip, both Doubao and Qwen's aesthetic levels have improved. In the end it wasn't me who visited — it was Doubao who visited.
12. Of course Doubao isn't invincible. The biggest problem is it's a bit too good at making things up, making deep usage impossible.
For instance, many paintings in Nukus are too niche for the model's knowledge base, so it spouts nonsense — I noticed the artist wasn't even right.
No need, bro. Just say you don't know. Showing off only tortures me. A good AI is one that knows how to say it doesn't know.
Someone carpooling with me to the Aral Sea said their group went to a niche paid attraction in Uzbekistan and asked Doubao whether to buy tickets. Doubao said it had famous wood carving collections. After buying tickets they found only a few wood carvings.
In short: Doubao can't help you avoid pitfalls — Dianping and Xiaohongshu posts can.
As for Qwen, everything's fine, but could someone make it stop with the pop-up notifications?
Finally I must clarify: all these use cases are built on Doubao and Qwen being free. This does not mean we should pay. Seeing a paid credit balance for every query makes it hard for me to pull the trigger.
The masses should still use what's free — meaning, Qwen, could you send another milk tea promotion?
Already looking forward to what AI can do on a trip to AI-buried North Korea. Hope the General likes it 😭
To统一回复 why I haven't gone to North Korea yet: the tour group said the General is unhappy, opens and closes borders on a whim. Maybe after the Sun Day holiday ends, if he's in a good mood, it'll open again.
(Cover image generated by ChatGPT; purely human-written text)
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