The Chinese AI chatbot, Ernie Bot, developed by tech company Baidu, has refused to answer questions about President Xi Jinping and COVID-19, and has blocked users who dared to inquire about the president’s relationship with Winnie the Pooh.
In 2017, Xi Jinping banned mentions of the popular bear on Chinese social media after being compared to the character.
The chatbot was unable to answer where COVID-19 originated, only responding with “the origin of the new coronavirus is still subject to scientific research,” despite the fact that we know the virus originated in China. In the video above, you can listen to what Baidu has to say about its Ernie Bot.
