Everyone is freaking out about Chinese AI startup DeepSeek. Are its claims too good to be true?

Sam Altman, OpenAI CEO speaks with President Donald J Trump, Masayoshi Son, SoftBank Group CEO, and Larry Ellison, chairman of Oracle Corporation and chief technology officer in the Roosevelt Room at the White House on Tuesday, Jan 21, 2025 in Washington, DC.
DeepSeek says it can match or best the performance of models from U.S. firms like Sam Altman’s OpenAI at a fraction of the cost.
Jabin Botsford—The Washington Post/Getty Images