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Is China surpassing the US in AI? Meta's chief AI scientist reacts to China's DeepSeek breakthrough

A Chinese startup called DeepSeek unveiled a new AI system that could match the capabilities of cutting-edge chatbots.

Updated on: Jan 25, 2025 04:11 PM IST
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There’s a new AI star in town: DeepSeek. The hottest release in generative AI reportedly exhibits incredible reasoning capabilities at a fraction of the cost of models like GPT. Meta’s chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, has reacted to this advancement by comparing the artificial intelligence scene in the United States of America and China.

Meta’s chief AI scientist Yann LeCun's post on DeepSeek has created a chatter. (Unsplash/possessedphotography)
Meta’s chief AI scientist Yann LeCun's post on DeepSeek has created a chatter. (Unsplash/possessedphotography)

“To people who see the performance of DeepSeek and think: ‘China is surpassing the US in AI.’ You are reading this wrong. The correct reading is: ‘Open source models are surpassing proprietary ones’,” LeCun wrote.

Also Read: Chinese youth turn to smart AI pets to tackle social anxiety and emotional isolation: Report

“DeepSeek has profited from open research and open source (e.g. PyTorch and Llama from Meta). They came up with new ideas and built them on top of other people's work. Because their work is published and open source, everyone can profit from it. That is the power of open research and open source,” the AI scientist added.

What is the hype around DeepSeek?

Various comments flooded the Meta scientist’s post, with some wondering if China would emerge as the winner in this AI war. An individual wrote, “China is surpassing the US in robotics.” Another added, “Welcome not back. Great Point that everything is built on open source. So Open Source is winning, not China.” A third commented, “I hope you are right.” A fourth expressed, “If open-source AI continues to thrive, how will this affect the job market in technology? Will it lower the barrier to entry for new developers, potentially leading to job displacement in some sectors but creation in others?”

Also Read: Man uses AI to apply for 1,000 jobs in sleep, lands 50 interview calls in a month

About Deepseek

Its official website says it “tops the leaderboard among open-source models and rivals the most advanced closed-source models globally.”

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Trisha Sengupta

Trisha Sengupta works as Chief Content Producer at Hindustan Times with over six years of experience in the digital newsroom. Known for her ability to decode the internet’s most talked-about moments, she specialises in high-engagement storytelling that bridges the gap between viral trends and traditional journalism. Throughout her tenure, Trisha has focused on the intersection of technology, finance, and human emotion. She frequently covers personal finance and real estate struggles in hubs like Gurgaon, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, while also documenting the unique challenges of the NRI experience. Her work often highlights the movements and philosophies of global newsmakers and personalities like Elon Musk, Mukesh Ambani, Nikhil Kamath, Dubai crown prince, and MrBeast. From reporting on Amazon or Meta layoffs and startup culture to the emergence of AI-driven platforms like Grok and xAI, she provides a grounded and empathetic perspective on the stories shaping our world. When not decoding the internet, Trisha is likely offline: lost in a book, exploring a historical ruin, or navigating the world as a solo traveler. She balances her fast-paced career with family time and a healthy dose of curiosity, currently trading her "human" sources for silicon ones as she masters AI to future-proof her storytelling.

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