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The Best Chinese Open Agentic/Reasoning Models (2025): Expanded Review, Comparative Insights & Use Cases

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The Best Chinese Open Agentic/Reasoning Models (2025): Expanded Review, Comparative Insights & Use Cases

China continues to set the pace in open-source large language model innovation, particularly in agentic architectures and deep reasoning. This guide provides a comprehensive review of the leading Chinese open agentic/reasoning models, featuring the latest and most influential entrants.

1. Kimi K2 (Moonshot AI)

Profile: Mixture-of-Experts architecture, up to 128K context, superior agentic ability, and bilingual (Chinese/English) fluency.

Strengths: High benchmark performance in reasoning, coding, mathematics, and long-document workflows. Well-rounded agentic skills include tool use, multi-step automation, and protocol adherence.

Use Cases: General-purpose agentic workflows, document intelligence, code generation, and multi-language enterprise applications.

Why Pick: The most balanced all-rounder for open-source agentic systems.

2. GLM‑4.5 (Zhipu AI)

Profile: 355B total parameters with native agentic design and long-context support.

Strengths: Purpose-built for complex agent execution, workflow automation, and tool orchestration. MIT-licensed with an established ecosystem of over 700,000 developers and rapid community adoption.

Use Cases: Multi-agent applications, cost-effective autonomous agents, and research requiring agent-native logic.

Why Pick: Ideal for building deeply agentic, tool-integrated, open LLM applications at scale.

3. Qwen3 / Qwen3-Coder (Alibaba DAMO)

Profile: Next-gen Mixture-of-Experts model, controlling reasoning depth and modes, with multilingual support across 119+ languages and specialization in coding.

Strengths: Dynamic switching between «thinking» and «non-thinking,» advanced function-calling, and high scores in math, coding, and tool tasks.

Use Cases: Multilingual tools, global SaaS, and applications for Chinese-centric development teams.

Why Pick: Provides precise control and the best multilingual support for complex coding tasks.

4. DeepSeek-R1 / V3

Profile: Reasoning-first model with multi-stage RLHF training, featuring 37B activated parameters per query (R1). V3 expands to 671B for top-tier math and coding performance.

Strengths: State-of-the-art in logic and chain-of-thought reasoning, surpassing many Western rivals in scientific tasks. Supports “Agentic Deep Research” protocols for autonomous planning and searching.

Use Cases: Technical and scientific research, factual analytics, and environments prioritizing interpretability.

Why Pick: Offers maximum reasoning accuracy and agentic extensions for research and planning.

5. Wu Dao 3.0 (BAAI)

Profile: Modular with strong long-context and multimodal capabilities, suitable for both text and images.

Strengths: Supports multilingual workflows and is particularly useful for startups and low-compute environments.

Use Cases: Multimodal agentic deployment and flexible application development for SMEs.

Why Pick: The most practical and modular solution for smaller-scope agentic tasks.

6. ChatGLM (Zhipu AI)

Profile: Edge-ready with bilingual support and context windows up to 1M; optimized for low-memory hardware.

Strengths: Best suited for on-device agentic applications emphasizing long-document reasoning.

Use Cases: Local government deployments and resource-constrained environments prioritizing privacy.

Why Pick: Flexible scaling from cloud to edge/mobile deployments with strong bilingual proficiency.

7. Manus & OpenManus (Monica AI / Community)

Profile: Sets a new benchmark for general AI agents with independent reasoning and real-world tool use. OpenManus facilitates agentic workflows based on several underlying models.

Strengths: Exhibits natural autonomous behavior across various applications such as web search and voice commands. Highly modular for tailored integration with Chinese open models.

Use Cases: Tasks requiring true mission-completion agents and multi-agent orchestration.

Why Pick: A significant step towards AGI-like agentic applications in China.

8. Doubao 1.5 Pro

Profile: Recognized for superior fact consistency and logical reasoning structures, with a high context window exceeding 1M tokens.

Strengths: Delivers real-time problem-solving and excels in scalable enterprise deployments.

Use Cases: Scenarios emphasizing logical rigor in enterprise-level automation.

Why Pick: Excellent reasoning capabilities making it suitable for complex business environments.

9. Baichuan, Stepfun, Minimax, 01.AI

Profile: Known as the «Six Tigers» of Chinese open AI. Each entity offers strong reasoning and agentic features in their respective domains.

Strengths: Offers diverse applications from conversational agents to domain-specific logic in law, finance, and science.

Why Pick: Choose based on sector-specific requirements, with potential for high-value business applications.

Comparative Table

Model Best For Agentic? Multilingual? Context Window Coding Reasoning Unique Features
Kimi K2 All-purpose agentic Yes Yes 128K High High Mixture-of-Experts, fast, open
GLM-4.5 Agent-native applications Yes Yes 128K+ High High Native task/planning API
Qwen3 Control, multilingual, SaaS Yes Yes (119+) 32K–1M Top Top Fast mode switching
Qwen3-Coder Repo-scale coding Yes Yes Up to 1M Top High Step-by-step repo analysis
DeepSeek-R1/V3 Reasoning/math/science Some Yes Large Top Highest RLHF, agentic science, V3: 671B
Wu Dao 3.0 Modular, multimodal, SME Yes Yes Large Mid High Text/image, code, modular builds
ChatGLM Edge/mobile agentic use Yes Yes 1M Mid High Quantized, resource-efficient
Manus Autonomous agents/voice Yes Yes Large Task Top Voice/smartphone, real-world AGI
Doubao 1.5 Pro Logic-heavy enterprise Yes Yes 1M+ Mid Top 1M+ tokens, logic structure
Baichuan/etc Industry-specific logic Yes Yes Varies Varies High Sector specialization

Key Takeaways & When to Use Which Model

  • Kimi K2: Best all-rounder for balanced agentic power, reasoning, long context, and broad language support.
  • GLM-4.5: Native agent ideal for autonomous task applications and tool orchestration; ecosystem leader.
  • Qwen3/Qwen3-Coder: Superior for agile control, multilingual enterprise tasks, and high-level code agentics.
  • DeepSeek-R1/V3: Gold standard for chain-of-thought reasoning, math/science, and research-grade logic.
  • Wu Dao 3.0: Most practical for SMEs/startups, especially for multimodal agentic solutions.
  • ChatGLM/Manus/OpenManus: Best suited for field deployments, privacy considerations, and truly autonomous agents.
  • Doubao 1.5 Pro/Baichuan/Six Tigers: Consider for sector-specific deployments where factual consistency and specialized logic are critical.

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