AI tools enable product search, store calls and auto‑buy; Baidu unveils ERNIE 5
Last week felt like a sprint for LLM teams. Gemini 3 showed up with a tighter dialogue loop, Opus 4.5 nudged its multimodal rendering a bit further, Nano Banana Pro claimed a new efficiency record, and GPT-5.1-Codex-Max dropped hints about deeper code-generation tricks. At the same time, a quieter shift is happening: more firms are trying to turn chat-style AI into shopping assistants.
The buzz usually lands on the flashier models, but the real question seems to be how fast those tools will slip from research labs into everyday purchases. Baidu’s showcase at Baidu World 2025 put that question front and center, unveiling ERNIE 5.0 and a bundle of apps aimed at the retail aisle. The demo suggested a broader push to weave conversational agents into buying steps, checking stock, alerting you when a price drops, maybe even closing a deal.
In that light, the details below show what’s actually being tried out on the ground.
New tools enable conversational product searches, let an AI call local stores for stock and deals, and authorize an AI to automatically buy items when prices hit a set threshold. Baidu Unveils ERNIE 5.0 and a Series of AI Applications at Baidu World 2025, Ramps Up Global Push. The company showcased upgrades across its AI portfolio--including the natively omni-modal ERNIE 5.0, new and improved digital human and agent products like Famou and GenFlow 3.0, global rollouts for tools such as MeDo and Oreate--and reported Apollo Go has completed over 17 million driverless rides.
Google rolled out Gemini 3 in the Gemini app and AI Search this week, bragging about record benchmark scores and a brand-new coding app. A research-grade Gemini 3 Deepthink is promised for AI Ultra subscribers, but only after another round of safety checks, so we still don’t know when, or if, it will reach a wider audience. At the same time, a handful of new AI tools are saying they can handle conversational product searches, call local stores to ask about stock and deals, and even approve a purchase when a price falls below a preset limit.
Over in China, Baidu used Baidu World 2025 to unveil ERNIE 5.0, a bundle of applications and a clear push toward global markets. They demoed the model’s tricks, yet they left out most numbers on performance or how it will hook into existing services. Nvidia’s earnings also made the headlines, though the report skimmed over what that means for the AI hardware supply chain.
All told, the week felt like a sprint of new features, but it’s still fuzzy whether developers and shoppers will actually use them at scale, or how safety rules will keep up.
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Common Questions Answered
What new shopping‑assistant capabilities do the AI tools mentioned in the article provide?
The article says the latest AI tools can conduct conversational product searches, place phone calls to local stores to check stock and deals, and even authorize automatic purchases when prices fall below a preset threshold. These functions turn chat‑style models into end‑to‑end shopping assistants.
Which model did Baidu unveil at Baidu World 2025 and what are its key features?
Baidu introduced the natively omni‑modal ERNIE 5.0, which supports seamless integration of text, image, and audio inputs. The rollout also included upgraded digital‑human agents such as Famou and GenFlow 3.0, highlighting a broader global push for AI applications.
How does Gemini 3 differ from earlier Gemini releases according to the article?
Gemini 3 arrives with a tighter dialogue loop and has been integrated into the Gemini app and AI Search, achieving record benchmark scores. A research‑tier variant called Gemini 3 Deepthink is slated for AI Ultra subscribers after additional safety testing.
What efficiency claim does Nano Banana Pro make in the article?
Nano Banana Pro is reported to have set a new efficiency record among large‑language‑model developers, indicating it delivers higher performance per compute unit than its predecessors. This claim positions it alongside other headline‑grabbing releases like Opus 4.5 and GPT‑5.1‑Codex‑Max.