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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Mark Blunden and Rachelle Abbott

DeepSeek: budget AI chatbot takes on ChatGPT & Google's Gemini

DeepSeek operates in a similar way to OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, but its developers say they have spent a fraction of the cost (Andy Wong/AP) - (AP)

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The emergence of Chinese artificial intelligence firm DeepSeek has rocked US tech giants’ stocks over concerns the new low-cost generative AI model could topple their dominance.

Tech shares plunged and chip maker Nvidia suffered falls of nearly 17 per cent as trading opened on Monday - and just a week after launch, DeepSeek became the most downloaded free app in the US.

The twist is this huge language AI model made at a fraction of the cost of its rivals, reportedly around £5 million, including the use of much cheaper processor chips to train its chatbot software.

Are the likes of Google and OpenAI preparing to be disrupted? The Standard podcast asked Dr Cecila Rikap, associate professor in economics and head of research at UCL’s Institute of Innovation and Public Purpose.

In part two, ahead of a major speech on Wednesday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to give news on airport expansion plans - The Standard podcast examines changing political language around environmental concerns about a Heathrow third runway.

We’re joined by Alethea Warrington, head of aviation, energy & heat at climate action charity Possible.

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