It started as a small startup from Hangzhou, China – and now it is shaking the field of artificial intelligence and causing disruptions in the U.S. stock market: The company DeepSeek announced that it has developed an AI model that can compete with the leading models from Google and OpenAI, at a much lower cost.
Following the announcement, tech stocks in the U.S., including Nvidia, dropped significantly today. Here's everything you need to know about the new platform.
What is DeepSeek?
It is an artificial intelligence laboratory established in 2023. The company claims that its models, DeepSeek-V3 and DeepSeek-R1, are comparable to the most advanced models from OpenAI and Meta.
The company gained global attention when its AI application, based on the DeepSeek-V3 model, topped the free download charts in Apple's App Store. According to business records in China, the controlling owner of the company is Liang Wenfeng, one of the founders of the hedge fund High-Flyer.
Why is DeepSeek a Threat to the Tech World?
The main reason DeepSeek has garnered so much attention is due to the low development costs of its AI model. The company claims that the cost of training the DeepSeek-V3 model was less than $6 million, compared to over $100 million invested in training the latest version of ChatGPT by OpenAI.
Moreover, DeepSeek managed to perform the training using less advanced chips, which enhances the achievement given the limitations imposed by the U.S. government on exporting advanced chips to China.
These limitations are meant to prevent the use of artificial intelligence systems for security purposes, such as developing weapons of mass destruction, cyberattacks, and violating human rights.
DeepSeek claims that its AI model is 20 to 50 times cheaper than the leading models of OpenAI, depending on the task. However, some question the company's claims. The CEO of Scale AI, Alexander Wang, stated in an interview that DeepSeek used advanced Nvidia chips, while counterclaims argue that the training costs were higher than reported. The company itself declined to respond to the allegations.
How Did the Stock Market Respond?
DeepSeek's announcements caused a stir in the American stock market. Nvidia's stock, the leading chip manufacturer, dropped by about 18%, resulting in a loss of around $560 billion from the company's market value – the largest loss in stock market history, according to Bloomberg reports. In addition, the S&P 500 index fell by 1.9%, and the technology-focused Nasdaq dropped by 3.4%. On the other hand, the Dow Jones index saw an increase of 0.3%.
Is the DeepSeek App Free?
The DeepSeek app, based on the DeepSeek-V3 AI model, is considered free and available for download to users worldwide. The company describes the app as using advanced artificial intelligence technology that leads international standards and compares with the top models in the world.
Since its launch on January 10, the app has gained significant popularity and reached the top of the free app list in the App Store.
Is the Platform Safe?
Similar to other Chinese apps, such as TikTok and RedNote, DeepSeek raises significant security concerns among experts. Along with its success, the company faced a large-scale cyberattack. DeepSeek's website reported on Monday that new user registrations were delayed due to malicious attacks on its services. The company asked new users to try to register again later, while registered users could continue using the app without issues.
What Can the DeepSeek Platform Do?
The DeepSeek platform, based on the DeepSeek-V3 and DeepSeek-R1 models, offers impressive capabilities in the field of artificial intelligence. It can generate complex texts, answer knowledge-based questions, analyze big data, and provide real-time insights.
Additionally, the system enables advanced natural language processing, image and video recognition, translation into multiple languages, creation of personalized marketing content, and even assistance in technological developments such as software code planning. DeepSeek also offers dedicated services for industries like healthcare, finance, and marketing, positioning itself as a direct competitor to OpenAI and Meta models.
How Do You Access the Platform and Use It?
Access to the DeepSeek platform is done via its official app, which is available for free download from the app store. After downloading, users are required to register using an email address and password, which allows full access to the platform's AI tools.
The app provides a user-friendly and intuitive interface where requests or questions can be entered in natural language and receive answers or results in real-time. The platform also includes guides and support services to help new users easily and efficiently utilize the advanced functions of the system.
The DeepSeek platform also offers advanced graphic capabilities as part of its AI services. It allows the creation of custom graphics and illustrations, high-resolution image processing, and support for 3D model design.
Users can upload existing images to edit them, enhance their quality, or add various graphic elements such as text, filters, and special effects. Additionally, the system is capable of analyzing images and providing information on complex graphic details, such as object recognition, locations, and even human emotions from facial expressions. These capabilities make DeepSeek a powerful tool for designers, marketers, and creative content developers.