- China has officially praised its rising star, DeepSeek, as a success.
- But instead of framing DeepSeek as a challenger, Beijing said it would “complement” American firms.
- While DeepSeek upended beliefs about AI costs, US firms are focused instead on a race to reach AGI.
China on Monday lauded DeepSeek’s much-hyped AI model, but said the Hangzhou-based company isn’t competing with America’s leading AI firms.
“As AI continues to reshape industries and everyday life of humanity, DeepSeek complements, rather than competes against, existing AI leaders like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind,” Beijing’s embassy in Washington said in a statement seen by Business Insider.
DeepSeek has continued to raise its profile in Beijing since its reportedly low-cost AI model stunned the tech world. It’s quickly become a star at home, with the startup’s founder, Liang Wenfeng, given a front-row seat at a symposium hosted last week by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
The symposium has been a rallying point for the tech scene in China, which saw Xi’s supportive remarks — and the attendance of once-shunned Alibaba founder Jack Ma — as a positive sign after years of industry crackdowns.
In yet another moment of official recognition for DeepSeek, the Chinese embassy’s statement on Monday praised the company as a success, saying it “significantly lowered AI development costs.”
DeepSeek has said that it spent less than $6 million on “official training” for its latest model, but the scope of those expenses isn’t clearly defined. SemiAnalysis, a semiconductor analytics firm, estimated in late January that the company may possess $500 million worth of GPUs.
American firms at the forefront of AI have also called the Western panic over DeepSeek overblown.
Google DeepMind’s CEO, for example, said that the Chinese model is impressive but showed “no real new scientific advance” toward the true goal among AI leaders — reaching artificial general intelligence.
Still, DeepSeek is seriously undercutting pricing models for American AI firms like OpenAI, with Bernstein tech analysts estimating that DeepSeek’s prices are 20 to 40 times cheaper.
But Beijing’s official line adopted a conciliatory tone, framing China’s foray into AI as a chance for collaboration rather than outmuscling US firms.
“AI companies across different regions contribute unique strengths, leading to better, more inclusive solutions for users everywhere,” the embassy said in its statement. Emphasizing a desire to collaborate and avoid conflict has long been central to China’s public image.
On the other hand, the US has warned that its race with China to develop more sophisticated AI would be a difference-maker in Beijing’s push for superiority.
The Chinese embassy did not respond to a request for additional comment sent by BI outside regular business hours. DeepSeek and the startup’s parent company, HighFlyer, did not respond to similar requests for comment.
