Kevin Roose

So all of that is swirling around the conversation about DeepSeek because we have just accelerated the AI race again. And now it is not just American companies competing with each other over who is in the lead of that race. China has also stepped in. And there's a lot of fear and anxiety about what happens if we fall behind.

So all of that is swirling around the conversation about DeepSeek because we have just accelerated the AI race again. And now it is not just American companies competing with each other over who is in the lead of that race. China has also stepped in. And there's a lot of fear and anxiety about what happens if we fall behind.

Well, it may well be, because if you're a person who believes that TikTok is a national security threat, there's nothing about DeepSeek that is less of a threat, right? It is a Chinese company. It is subject to all the same laws and censorship guidelines as other Chinese software companies are.

Well, it may well be, because if you're a person who believes that TikTok is a national security threat, there's nothing about DeepSeek that is less of a threat, right? It is a Chinese company. It is subject to all the same laws and censorship guidelines as other Chinese software companies are.

So, for example, if you ask DeepSeek to tell you what happened at Tiananmen Square or to say something mean about Xi Jinping, the leader of China, it won't do it. And I would not be surprised if in the coming weeks and months, we do see lawmakers in the US saying, wait a minute, we passed a law to ban TikTok. Why are we not also passing a law to ban DeepSeek?

So, for example, if you ask DeepSeek to tell you what happened at Tiananmen Square or to say something mean about Xi Jinping, the leader of China, it won't do it. And I would not be surprised if in the coming weeks and months, we do see lawmakers in the US saying, wait a minute, we passed a law to ban TikTok. Why are we not also passing a law to ban DeepSeek?

So I think that's one potential outcome here, but there's a key difference, which is that TikTok is not open source software. You cannot download TikTok and create your own version of it. And so already the DeepSeek platform models have been downloaded and recreated all over the world by lots and lots of different people and companies.

So I think that's one potential outcome here, but there's a key difference, which is that TikTok is not open source software. You cannot download TikTok and create your own version of it. And so already the DeepSeek platform models have been downloaded and recreated all over the world by lots and lots of different people and companies.

I think what the DeepSeek story suggests is that it is going to be quite challenging to contain the spread of powerful AI without some big moves.

I think what the DeepSeek story suggests is that it is going to be quite challenging to contain the spread of powerful AI without some big moves.

So there are people in the American tech scene who are calling this deep-seek moment the Sputnik moment for the AI race, because just as the launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union kicked off the 20th century space race and created profound fear and anxiety among Western nations about whether they were behind, their biggest political adversary when it came to technology.

So there are people in the American tech scene who are calling this deep-seek moment the Sputnik moment for the AI race, because just as the launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union kicked off the 20th century space race and created profound fear and anxiety among Western nations about whether they were behind, their biggest political adversary when it came to technology.

A lot of people are looking at this moment with DeepSeek as kicking off a new era in the AI race where we really want to stay ahead of China. And there are people who say that having a lead in AI, if you are the United States, even if it's just a lead of a couple months or a couple years over your political adversaries is very important. And that may be true.

A lot of people are looking at this moment with DeepSeek as kicking off a new era in the AI race where we really want to stay ahead of China. And there are people who say that having a lead in AI, if you are the United States, even if it's just a lead of a couple months or a couple years over your political adversaries is very important. And that may be true.

But people who study AI, people who look at this industry closely, who are paying attention to the trends in AI, believed that these models would become cheaper and cheaper over time as well as becoming more powerful over time. So this really fits neatly with a lot of what people had been predicting for years.

But people who study AI, people who look at this industry closely, who are paying attention to the trends in AI, believed that these models would become cheaper and cheaper over time as well as becoming more powerful over time. So this really fits neatly with a lot of what people had been predicting for years.

Now, they might not have predicted that this sort of moment would happen from a Chinese AI company. They might not have predicted exactly what the breakthroughs would be that allowed for the models to get cheaper. But this is in keeping with the overall trend in AI that we have seen over the past few years, which is that the models keep getting better and they keep getting more efficient.

Now, they might not have predicted that this sort of moment would happen from a Chinese AI company. They might not have predicted exactly what the breakthroughs would be that allowed for the models to get cheaper. But this is in keeping with the overall trend in AI that we have seen over the past few years, which is that the models keep getting better and they keep getting more efficient.

Yeah, so that is what happened here, but just maybe a little faster than people had expected. But I think the larger point is that these systems are now improving so rapidly and in so many places all at once that I think it is only a matter of time before nearly everyone in the world has access to very powerful AI models.

Yeah, so that is what happened here, but just maybe a little faster than people had expected. But I think the larger point is that these systems are now improving so rapidly and in so many places all at once that I think it is only a matter of time before nearly everyone in the world has access to very powerful AI models.