An artificial intelligence lab based in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, has captured global attention with the release of its groundbreaking AI model, trained at a fraction of the cost of mainstream models like OpenAI's ChatGPT.
DeepSeek, founded by hedge fund manager Liang Wenfeng, unveiled its R1 model last Monday, accompanied by a detailed paper outlining a novel approach to training large-scale reinforcement learning (RL) models without relying on supervised fine-tuning (SFT) as a preliminary step.
Within days, DeepSeek's app soared to the top of the iPhone free app charts in both China and the United States, surpassing the once-dominant ChatGPT.
The release of DeepSeek's R1 model has ignited a heated debate in Silicon Valley about whether better-resourced U.S. AI companies, including Meta and OpenAI, can maintain their technological advantage.
Meanwhile, Liang has become a focal point of discussion in China. Last week, he was invited to a symposium in Beijing, where Chinese Premier Li Qiang sought opinions and suggestions from experts, entrepreneurs, and representatives across various sectors—including education, science, culture, health, and sports—on a draft government work report.
Who Is Liang Wenfeng?
Liang Wenfeng graduated from Zhejiang University with a degree in Artificial Intelligence. In 2016, he co-founded the quantitative hedge fund High-Flyer, which quickly gained recognition for its innovative use of AI-driven trading strategies. By 2021, High-Flyer had fully integrated AI into its operations, using machine learning models to predict market trends and make data-driven investment decisions.
In May 2023, Liang founded DeepSeek, aiming to advance the field of artificial general intelligence (AGI). Unlike traditional for-profit ventures, DeepSeek is envisioned as a platform for long-term, fundamental research, where curiosity-driven exploration can drive meaningful advancements in AI.
Liang has remained low-profile, granting interviews only to Anyong, a sub-brand of China's commercial tech media 36Kr, in 2023 and 2024. Excerpts from these interviews offer a glimpse into his philosophy and vision.
DeepSeek's 'Long-Termism'
For Liang, DeepSeek is more than a business; it's a passion project driven by deep curiosity and a commitment to foundational research. He acknowledges that basic research often yields low immediate returns on investment, but he is captivated by the challenge of exploring complex fields like finance and the potential of AGI. Liang focuses on understanding the essence of human intelligence and the processes that underlie it, believing that such exploration is crucial despite the lack of immediate commercial incentives.
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Behind China's rising AI startup DeepSeek: Who is Liang Wenfeng?
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