Chinese AI companies deploy new models and 4.5 billion yuan promotions ahead of 2026 Lunar New Year

In the run-up to the 2026 Lunar New Year festivities starting on February 15, Chinese AI firms are rolling out upgraded models such as DeepSeek's V4, Zhipu AI's GLM-5 and MiniMax's M2.2, alongside large-scale user acquisition campaigns. Alibaba plans to spend 3 billion yuan on incentives for its Qwen app, while Tencent and Baidu will allocate 1 billion yuan and 500 million yuan respectively to push their AI services during the extended nine-day holiday.