It is powered by the open source DeepSeek-V3 model, which its researchers claim was developed for less than $6m (£7.5m) – significantly less than the billions spent by rivals.
But this claim has been disputed by others in the AI space.
The researchers say they use already existing technology, as well as open source code – software that can be used, modified or distributed by anybody free of charge.
DeepSeek’s emergence comes as the US is restricting the sale of the advanced chip technology that powers AI to China.
To continue their work without steady supplies of imported advanced chips, Chinese AI developers have shared their work with each other and experimented with new approaches to the technology.
This has resulted in AI models that require far less computing power than before. It also means that they cost a lot less than previously thought possible, which has the potential to upend the industry.
After DeepSeek-R1 was launched earlier this month, the company boasted of “performance on par with” one of ChatGPT maker OpenAI’s latest models – when used for tasks such as maths, coding and natural language reasoning.
Silicon Valley venture capitalist and Donald Trump advisor Marc Andreessen described DeepSeek-R1 as “AI’s Sputnik moment”, a reference to the satellite launched by the Soviet Union in 1957.
At the time, the US was considered to have been caught off-guard by their rival’s technological achievement.
DeepSeek’s popularity has startled markets. ASML, the Dutch chip equipment maker, saw its share price tumble by more than 10% while shares in Siemens Energy, which makes hardware related to AI, plunged by 21%.
“This idea of a low-cost Chinese version hasn’t necessarily been forefront, so it’s taken the market a little bit by surprise,” said Fiona Cincotta, senior market analyst at City Index.
“So, if you suddenly get this low-cost AI model, then that’s going to raise concerns over the profits of rivals, particularly given the amount that they’ve already invested in more expensive AI infrastructure.”
And Singapore-based technology equity advisor Vey-Sern Ling told the BBC it could “potentially derail the investment case for the entire AI supply chain”.
But Wall Street banking giant Citi cautioned that while DeepSeek could challenge the dominant positions of American companies such as OpenAI, issues faced by Chinese firms could hamper their development.
“We estimate that in an inevitably more restrictive environment, US access to more advanced chips is an advantage,” its analysts said in a report.
Last week, a consortium of US tech firms and foreign investors announced The Stargate Project, a company which is putting $500bn into AI infrastructure in Texas.
