The AI industry has undergone transformative changes over the past decade, with advances in machine learning, natural language processing, and computer vision reshaping the way we interact with technology.

Among the key players driving this revolution is Chinese-based DeepSeek, a free AI-powered chatbot and assistant that is pushing the boundaries of AI innovation. By developing cutting-edge solutions and fostering a culture of research and collaboration, DeepSeek has become a game-changer in the AI landscape.

A revolution with limited resources

Since the debut of ChatGPT in November 2022, the AI industry has been booming, with many tech giants like Meta, Microsoft, and Google investing billions of USD in the field and developing a range of similar models. AI has become an integral part of our daily lives with versatile applications that not only improve productivity, efficiency, and quality, but also reduce time and costs.

Such AI models require high computing power with many graphic processing units (GPUs). For example, U.S. multinational NVIDIA, one of the pioneering chip companies, focuses on advanced GPUs with high computing power, which is crucial for AI models. As a result, the company became the most valuable company in the world, with a stock value of 3.5 trillion USD.

However, in parallel with this AI revolution, the U.S. has restricted China from obtaining advanced AI chips, even via other countries, to limit the development of AI models, citing concerns that China could use AI technology for military purposes. As a result, many Chinese companies were restricted to downstream applications and linked AI to hardware systems.

After the first release of the AI open-source chatbot model on January 20, a relatively unknown company, DeepSeek, became the talk of the town, especially in Silicon Valley. The DeepSeek-R1 model competes with the leading OpenAI o1 model on the basis of capability, cost and speed.

The company has focused on software-based development and is trying to find an alternative way, rather than focusing on advanced hardware systems and supercomputers, to develop a robust AI model using limited resources, including AI chips and GPUs. It has used a chain of thoughts, reinforcement learning, trial and error, reward engineering, distillation, emergent behavior network, mixing of experts, and memory-efficient techniques to circumvent the scarcity of AI chips and redesign the radical structure of AI models.

The miraculous rise of DeepSeek, with low-cost and memory-efficient techniques, not only stunned the tech giants, but also led to a rethinking about the cost of AI training and its relevant use of AI chips. As a result, NVIDIA lost 600 billion USD in market value in one night, and many tech giants, such as ByteDance and Alibaba, lowered the price of their AI models. DeepSeek has shown how to leverage memory and computing power to train and run AI models with billions of parameters, paving the way for an AI industry revolution with limited resources.

AI access for all

One of DeepSeek's most significant contributions to the AI industry is its commitment to democratizing access to AI technologies. Recognizing that the benefits of AI should be available to all, the company has developed easy-to-use models, tools, and platforms that enable users to leverage AI without requiring extensive technical expertise. Soon after its release, the DeepSeek App became the most downloaded free App in the U.S. Apple Store, recognizing its popularity made DeepSeek available to its users.

Unlike ChatGPT, DeepSeek is an open-source AI model under the license of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which means that anyone can use the model for professional or personal purposes without restrictions on tokens and parameters. In addition, anyone can run the DeepSeek-R1 model on a local computer based on their hardware configuration, making the model accessible to a wide range of users and more extensible to link with versatile applications and learning.

Through its cutting-edge technologies, low cost, and commitment to democratizing access to AI, the company is redefining what is possible with AI. DeepSeek is paving the way for a future where AI is not only powerful, but also inclusive, responsible, and beneficial to all.

In a world increasingly shaped by technology, DeepSeek stands as a beacon of progress, demonstrating how AI can be a force for good and a catalyst for positive change. With its impressive track record and ambitious vision, DeepSeek is not just transforming the AI industry — it is shaping the future of humanity.

Dr. Md Altab Hossin is a Bangladeshi expert at the School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Chengdu University.