China is celebrating the success of homegrown tech startup DeepSeek, whose latest artificial intelligence model has captured significant attention in both Silicon Valley and Wall Street.
Social media platforms in China have been abuzz, with trending hashtags such as “DeepSeek overturns the US stocks overnight” and “DeepSeek makes Meta panic,” reflecting the enthusiasm surrounding the company’s rapid rise. DeepSeek has soared to the top of international app store charts, surpassing OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Founder Liang Wenfeng is being hailed as a visionary who might help China cultivate a culture of innovation to rival that of Silicon Valley. Known for his preference for hiring domestic talent and maintaining open-source AI models, Liang has fostered a collaborative environment within his company.
DeepSeek, which launched in 2023, unveiled its latest model, DeepSeek R1, on January 20. Liang described it as nearly comparable to OpenAI’s GPT-4, boasting a development cost of under $6 million—significantly lower than competing AI models.
Prominent tech investor Marc Andreessen referred to this breakthrough as an “Sputnik moment,” while Trump described it as a “wake-up call” for the U.S. amid intense competition with China in the AI sector.
Challenges stemming from U.S. tech export controls have been noted by Liang, who emphasized that these hurdles have not been financial but rather related to access to “high-end chips.” Despite these challenges, he remains optimistic about China’s potential to compete globally.
DeepSeek employs just under 140 researchers and engineers, a small team compared to the larger firms dominating the AI landscape. The company actively recruits talent in fields such as deep learning and engineering, offering competitive salaries that can reach up to 90,000 yuan ($12,400) per month.
A statement on DeepSeek’s official WeChat account highlights the company’s commitment to “exploring the essence of AGI” (artificial general intelligence) and emphasizes their mission to avoid mediocrity while addressing significant questions through curiosity and innovation.
As China continues to enhance its technological capabilities, DeepSeek’s success could represent a pivotal moment in the global AI race.
Credit: CNN
