Government policies, generous funding and a pipeline of AI graduates have helped Chinese firms create advanced LLMs.

The start-up had become a key player in the “Chinese Large-Model Technology Avengers Team” that would counter US AI dominance, said another. China’s delight, however, spelled pain for several giant US technology companies as investors questioned whether DeepSeek’s breakthrough undermined the case for their colossal spending on AI infrastructure.

The Chinese tech company DeepSeek is causing major waves in the AI industry - what are they doing that’s making everyone rethink AI’s future?