OpenAI, the company that created ChatGPT, has expressed dissatisfaction over competitors, notably those in China, utilizing its work to quickly expand their own artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
This week, the abrupt appearance of DeepSeek, a Chinese program that can mimic ChatGPT’s performance, ostensibly for a fraction of the price, severely damaged OpenAI’s and other US companies’ standing as global leaders in AI.
According to Bloomberg, Microsoft is looking into the unauthorized use of data owned by OpenAI, in which it has a significant stake.
DeepSeek and Microsoft have been contacted by the BBC for comment.
David Sacks, the newly designated “AI and crypto czar” in the White House, has expressed similar worries to those of OpenAI.
In an interview with Fox News, he hypothesized that DeepSeek would have improved by using OpenAI’s models—a technique known as knowledge distillation.
“There’s substantial evidence that what DeepSeek did here is they distilled the knowledge out of OpenAI’s models,” said Sacks.
“I believe that one of the things that will happen in the coming months is that our top AI businesses will try to stop distillation. Some of these imitation models would undoubtedly slow down as a result.
OpenAI claimed that Chinese and other businesses were “constantly trying to distil the models of leading US AI companies” in a statement.
“As we go forward… it is critically important that we are working closely with the U.S. government to best protect the most capable models,” it stated.
However, the charge of violating intellectual property rights is not new in the tech industry and has been regularly thrown at prominent AI companies in the US.
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According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, US officials are also thinking about the ramifications of DeepSeek’s rise for national security.
“I spoke with [the National Security Council] this morning, they are looking into what [the national security implications] may be,” Ms. Leavitt said, echoing earlier statements made by US President Donald Trump that DeepSeek should serve as a wake-up call for the US tech sector.
The US Navy apparently prohibited its members from using DeepSeek’s apps because of “potential security and ethical concerns” before making the announcement.
The US Navy has warned its employees via email not to use the DeepSeek app because of “potential security and ethical concerns associated with the model’s origin and usage,” according to CNBC.
A BBC News request for comment was not immediately answered by the Navy.
Experts in data security have cautioned users against using the program because it gathers a lot of personal information and keeps it on Chinese servers.
Cyber attacks
DeepSeek claims that it has been the victim of cyberattacks in the interim. It announced on Monday that “large-scale malicious attacks” on its software would compel it to temporarily restrict registrations.
The company’s website displays a notice stating that due to the attacks, registration may be busy.
According to Yuyuan Tantian, a social media outlet run by CCTV, China’s state broadcaster, the company has seen “several” cyberattacks in recent weeks, with the “intensity” of these attacks increasing.
DeepSeek’s apparent breakthrough has rocked America’s AI business, particularly given the widespread belief that the US was far ahead in the race.
This was said to have been solidified by a number of trade barriers that prevented China from obtaining high-end chips.
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To diversify its economy, China has increased its investment in cutting-edge technology, but DeepSeek is not among the major Chinese companies creating AI models to compete with ChatGPT, which is produced in the US.
Since the US is home to some of the largest semiconductor makers, experts say the US still has an advantage. However, it’s still unknown how DeepSeek developed its model and how far it can go.
More information from Fan Wang
SOURCE: BBC
