It is reportedly hiring engineers and speaking to manufacturers.
DeepSeek, the Chinese AI company which sometimes keeps tech executives awake at night, is reportedly looking to build its own silicon. Reuters' (via USNews) sources suggest DeepSeek is looking to build a chip for inference, which is the process of running a model that has already been trained and built. The move comes as part of a push to reduce its reliance on third-party chip providers like Huawei and NVIDIA. If the report is accurate, it could signal another entrant in the fiercely competitive Chinese AI market.
The report suggests DeepSeek is already in talks with manufacturing partners and has quietly begun hiring engineers to support the effort. Of course, given the various import and export bans, we probably won't see any of DeepSeek's tech leaving China. But, given how the company made its name with an open-source model that could hold its own against the big names for a fraction of the cost, its interest in chip development should be taken seriously. Especially if it finds a way to create similar cost and power savings which would likely put another dent in NVIDIA's stock.