KEY POINTS
- DeepSeek claimed that it developed its AI chatbot with a budget of less than $6 million
- Questions emerged on the reasoning of companies pledging billions toward AI development
- AI tokens that 'align' with DeepSeek's funding model to bring 'cheaper and functional' AI will 'stand the test of time': O.XYZ Founder
DeepSeek, the artificial intelligence chatbot from a Chinese firm that shook U.S. tech stocks hard and also rocked the AI cryptocurrency token circle to the core over the weekend, appeared to be a thorn on the side of American tech and was indeed a "wake-up call."
Following the AI assistant's launch last week, there have been concerns about whether it's actually possible to develop such a high-end AI product with little funding, as the DeepSeek development team claimed.
In an exclusive with International Business Times, Ahmad Shadid, the founder of O.XYZ, which is building the world's "first Sovereign Super AI," shared his thoughts on DeepSeek's disruption of the tech space and possible catalysts around the Chinese AI model.
DeepSeek Fueled Curiosity, But Also Triggered Sell-Offs
News about DeepSeek spread like a wildfire on social media over the weekend, sending jitters to crypto users who invested in AI agentic tokens. Soon after, a widespread AI token sell-off took place, with some major projects in the Web3 x AI space getting hit hard.
As a result of the sell-offs, multiple AI coins plunged, including Nosana (NOS), Humans.ai (HEART), and even leading project Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET).
DeepSeek was indeed a curious case for many tech analysts and enthusiasts who were amazed by the team's claim of having been able to produce such a product even without massive funding – reportedly less than $6 million – as OpenAI and other leading AI companies had to amass to develop their AI assistants.
On the other hand, it was also a catalyst for deeper reflection not just among U.S.-based tech firms, but also teams working on the convergence of blockchain and AI.
"While temporary capitulation might take a short while, a comprehensive rebalancing is imminent," Shadid said of the recent events that took place around the crypto market since DeepSeek's crash-landing in the tech space.
Is It Time for an 'Alignment'?
For Shadid, DeepSeek's arrival may not be entirely a negative thing, as some tech enthusiasts and users have painted it to be, especially those who compared the AI chatbot to the ever-popular ChatGPT.
"Web3 AI innovators might find a way to align with Chinese tech in the mid to long term while hedging their alliance to get the best of both markets," he said.
Shahid's projection regarding an alignment with Chinese tech may not be far off, as some analysts have said there is a possibility DeepSeek's model could "provide opportunities for the U.S. to learn from China's advancements and apply those lessons domestically."
After all, the Chinese AI assistant's development raised doubts about why some American tech titans pledged billions worth of AI investments into some of the AI industry's major players when DeepSeek was supposedly built on a much smaller budget.
"Should the DeepSeek AI funding model prove sustainable, the AI tokens or projects that will stand the test of time will align with these models to bring users a cheap, functional AI solution," Shadid projected.
Notably, DeepSeek frustrated some in the broader tech space, but others, such as OpenAI's Sam Altman, have acknowledged the chatbot's "impressive" technology.
