Welcome to Foreign Policy ’s China Brief. The highlights this week: Chinese AI start-up DeepSeek disrupts U.S.
markets with a new large language model, U.S. President Donald Trump threatens major tariffs on Taiwanese semiconductors , and senior doctors in China raise the alarm about the efficacy of Chinese generic drugs .
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time. ✓ Signed Up What to Make of DeepSeek’s Success On Monday, the news of a powerful large language model created by Chinese artificial intelligence firm DeepSeek wiped $1 trillion off the U.
S. Nasdaq 100 index in a single day , reversing weeks of gains in a heated market driven by belief in an AI-dominated future. Chipmaker Nvidia was the worst off, losing nearly $600 billion in value on Monday.
DeepSeek’s model was reportedly trained on Nvidia’s cheaper, older chips and not its cutting-edge products, which are sanctioned in China. Chinese stock markets are closed for Lunar New Year but will likely see a rally upon reopening this week—though DeepSeek isn’t publicly traded. Some of the U.
S. media discussion around DeepSeek is overblown , such as the claim that its AI model only cost $5.5 million to develop.
As DeepSeek’s own statements make clear , that was the cost of the model’s final training run—not including the research, equipment, salaries, and other costs involved. The rush by analysts to.
