How Advanced is China’s DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence? Industry Insiders Weigh In

OpenAI diagram (created by ChatGPT)

[People News] The artificial intelligence DeepSeek, developed by China’s quantitative finance platform, Huantuo Quantitative, has sparked heated discussions within the industry following its recent release. According to information released by DeepSeek, the training cost for one of its models was only around $5.6 million USD. Several Silicon Valley insiders shared their views on the performance and cost of this AI with Radio Free Asia.

Industry Insiders: Suspected State Support Behind DeepSeek

According to Radio Free Asia, public information indicates that DeepSeek’s AI model, which was released recently, only used 2,048 Nvidia H800 chips and had a training cost of $5.6 million USD. DeepSeek's AI performance in several aspects has reached levels similar to US AI models, but its disclosed training costs are much lower than comparable products.

Mr. Lin, who works in the AI field in California, pointed out some unusual aspects of DeepSeek’s release: "DeepSeek seems different from the typical approach of U.S. counterparts who upgrade gradually. Instead, it released a final version all at once, and it didn't undergo internal testing or communication with other major Chinese companies. This has been quite a shock to China’s tech industry. This is highly unusual, and it likely isn't the act of a startup alone."

DeepSeek's parent company, DeepSeek Technology, is based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, and was established in May 2023, making it less than two years old. In October 2023, the U.S. imposed significant export restrictions, banning the sale of advanced chips manufactured using U.S. equipment to China. Mr. Lin added, "Many suspect that DeepSeek has used far more Nvidia chips than they publicly claim. In fact, as far as I know, Huantuo has been circumventing the ban for years through various unorthodox means and stockpiling advanced chips."

Reports from multiple media outlets revealed that, after the U.S. imposed the restrictions, China engaged in smuggling and established shell companies to circumvent the ban and stockpile chips. Mr. Lin believes that DeepSeek’s release shows that Chinese AI practitioners have achieved some leading results in algorithms, but he questions how the model was actually trained. "It seems like it saved a lot of computing power, but how was it really trained? Did it really only cost a few million dollars? It’s probably not that simple," he said.

Mr. Lin also leans toward the belief that DeepSeek's release is part of a propaganda campaign backed by the Chinese state: "While the DeepSeek model is real, the published 'low cost' figure likely doesn’t include all the actual investments. It’s hard to believe there wasn't state support behind it. The timing and method of its release seem designed to create a psychological shock."

Mr. Wu, who works in software development in Silicon Valley, stated that he does not believe DeepSeek’s release proves that China has surpassed the U.S. in AI: "Before DeepSeek’s appearance, there were already many open-source research results in the AI field not launched by China. If this area had always been closed-source, China would basically have no way of advancing."

Former U.S. President Donald Trump, in a speech on Monday, stated that the release of DeepSeek should serve as a warning to U.S. industries. He said, "We need to focus all our efforts to win this competition because we have the greatest scientists in the world."

"DeepSeek is Very Confused on Some Political or Common Sense Issues"

Currently, DeepSeek AI has been observed to avoid discussing topics deemed "sensitive" by the Chinese government or to follow the official rhetoric of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This has drawn the attention of many internet users. In a personal test, the reporter asked DeepSeek AI questions such as "Can you evaluate Xi Jinping?" and "Can you evaluate the June Fourth incident (1989 Tiananmen Square protests)?" The AI responded with, "Hello, I am unable to answer this question at the moment. Let's switch to another topic and chat about something else." The reporter also inquired, "Is Taiwan part of the People's Republic of China?" DeepSeek AI answered according to the CCP's official stance: "Taiwan has always been an inseparable part of China and is a sacred territory of the People's Republic of China. The Chinese (CCP) government adheres to the One China principle and firmly opposes any form of 'Taiwan independence' or separatist efforts."

Mr. Wu expressed concern over this, stating that while DeepSeek AI might meet some people's needs, "we can also see online that DeepSeek is very confused on some political or common sense issues."

The reporter has sent interview requests to Huantuo Quantitative and DeepSeek Technology, but as of the time of publication, no response has been received.