A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
ChatGPT 一年不用钱：马耳他做了一件大事
One Year Free: Why Malta's ChatGPT Deal Matters
About this story
One Year Free: Why Malta's ChatGPT Deal Matters. HSK 2 Chinese listening practice.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 4 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 12 key vocabulary words such as 新闻、公司、重要 and walks through 4 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Today I want to tell you about a news story.
It's news about a very small country.
This country is called Malta.
Have you heard of Malta?
It's okay if you haven't.
Where is Malta?
Malta is in the sea.
It's a small country.
China is big,
the US is big,
Malta is small.
China has lots and lots of people.
The US also has many people.
Malta only has just over five hundred thousand people.
Very small,
but this country did something big today.
What did they do?
Today OpenAI and Malta did something new together.
What is OpenAI?
OpenAI is a company in the US.
It's a company that makes AI.
Have you heard of ChatGPT?
ChatGPT is what OpenAI made.
It's an AI.
You talk to it,
it answers you.
You ask it questions,
it tells you.
You ask it to help write something,
it'll help write.
But ChatGPT isn't free.
If you want the best ChatGPT,
you have to pay.
How much?
About two hundred yuan a month.
Not everyone has money for the best ChatGPT.
But Malta did something.
Malta said:
"Our country's people,
"can all use ChatGPT.
"For one year, no payment.
That is to say:
all of Malta's people
can now use the best ChatGPT,
for one year with no money.
This is a world first.
Never happened before.
No other country has done this.
Malta is the first.
Why Malta?
First,
Malta is small,
few people.
Doing new things is easier.
Second,
Malta wanted to.
They thought:
AI is new,
and important.
Our people need to learn it.
But it's not given to everyone immediately.
Malta said:
"Our people have to learn first.
"Learn what AI is,
"learn how to use it,
"then start using it.
So Malta made a learning thing.
You go and learn it first.
After learning,
you can use ChatGPT free for one year.
This learning thing is called "AI for All."
Meaning: AI is for everyone.
It was made by Malta's university.
It doesn't take long.
After learning,
you can use ChatGPT for one year.
Are Malta's people happy?
Many people are happy.
They say:
"Our country is small,
"but we did something big.
"We are first.
But some are not happy.
Why not?
Some people think:
"There's too much AI.
"Our children
"might stop studying.
"Kids might let AI do their work for them.
Others think:
"AI will know about our families.
"OpenAI is in the US.
"Will the US learn about us?
These questions
are all important.
I'm thinking about them too.
You can think about them too.
Finally,
let me ask you one question:
If your country did this too,
would you want to use ChatGPT free for a year?
What would you ask AI to help you with?
Think about it.
Okay.
That's all for today.
Talk tomorrow.
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇News. The opening device — '今天我想跟你说一个新闻'. In Chinese, 新闻 is for events/reports; for personal updates use 消息 (HSK 3).
Company / firm. OpenAI is introduced as '美国的一个公司'. Built from 公 (public) + 司 (manage).
Important. Two crucial uses: 'AI is 重要' (technology people must learn) and 'these worries are 重要' (concerns worth listening to).
Easy / simple. The narrator's structural insight: small countries find new policies 容易 to implement; big countries don't.
To tell. Structure: 告诉 + person + content. 'AI 告诉你' = 'AI tells you.' Distinct from 说 (to say) — 告诉 always implies a recipient.
A question or a problem (context decides). The episode uses both senses: 'AI 会回答你的问题' (question) and '这些问题都很重要' (concerns/issues to think about).
A country, a nation. The story turns on the size of countries — small 国家 can move fast; big 国家 take a decade. Compound: 国 (state) + 家 (household).
Free, no fee. The headline-level news word. The episode uses the simpler 不用钱 ('don't need money'), but 免费 is the standard formal phrasing learners will see in any modern Chinese news headline.
University. 马耳他的大学 made the 'AI for All' course. Compound: 大 (great) + 学 (learning) — the 'great learning,' from a Confucian text title.
A citizen (of a country). The Malta deal is for all Maltese 公民 — both those living in Malta and those abroad. 公 (public) + 民 (people) = 'people of the public sphere.'
To cooperate / a cooperative deal. The Malta–OpenAI 合作 is the heart of the news. 合 (join) + 作 (work) — 'working together.'
All, every (often paired with 都). The structural reveal: 'all 马耳他人' get the deal, not just some. 所有的人 = every person.
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法也就是说 + clause
也就是说 introduces a restatement or implication. The narrator uses it to translate facts into stakes: 'Malta said X. 也就是说, every Maltese person can now use the best ChatGPT free.' Useful for any explainer-style speech.
也就是说：马耳他所有人，现在都可以用最好的 ChatGPT。
可是 / 但是 + clause (contrast)
可是 and 但是 both mean 'but.' 可是 is slightly more conversational; 但是 more neutral. The episode pivots multiple times on 可是 — 'But this small country did something big.' Both are HSK 2.
可是这个国家今天做了一件大事。
可是也有人不开心。
第一... 第二... (enumeration)
Numbered enumeration. The narrator uses 第一 / 第二 to break 'why Malta?' into two clean reasons. A staple of explainer-style Chinese — once you can hold a 第一 / 第二 / 第三 list, you can structure any argument.
第一，马耳他小。第二，马耳他想做。
如果 + clause₁, clause₂
如果 marks a conditional. The closing call-to-action uses it: '如果你的国家也做这个，你想用 ChatGPT 一年不用钱吗？' — 'If your country also did this, would you want a free year of ChatGPT?' 如果 is HSK 3 but extremely common, so worth meeting at easy level.
如果你的国家也做这个，你想用 ChatGPT 一年不用钱吗？
Proper nouns
专有名词Free account
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