18 August 2026

Alibaba's smaller Qwen model matches larger competitors on benchmark

• Alibaba's Qwen 3.8 27B model scored 52 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, a standardized test of AI capability.
• This smaller model matched GPT-5.6 Luna and came close to much larger models like GLM-5.2 and DeepSeek V4 Pro.
• The result suggests a smaller model from Alibaba can perform as well as larger competitors on at least one measurement.

How it was covered

Simon WillisonDaily notes and links

Qwen 3.8 27B model scored 52 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, matching GPT-5.6 Luna and coming close to larger models like GLM-5.2 and DeepSeek V4 Pro. The newsletter emphasises that this 27B parameter model achieves competitive performance against much larger models.