OpenAI CEO Sam Altman finally breaks silence on DeepSeek’s AI breakthrough—Here’s what he said

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek sent shockwaves through global markets on Monday, wiping out over $1 trillion in value after its AI chatbot took the number 1 spot Apple App Store, surpassing OpenAI. Dubbed an “AI Sputnik” moment, the launch of DeepSeek’s cost-efficient V3 model has rattled industry players worldwide.

Reports suggest that the DeepSeek AI breakthrough model was developed at a cost of under $6 million—an unsettling figure for U.S. tech firms that have invested billions into similar technologies. The unexpected development has cast doubts on the sustainability of existing business models reliant on heavy capital investment in AI research.

Skepticism and Praise for DeepSeek

Not everyone is convinced by the claims. Neal Khosla, CEO of Curai, expressed skepticism about the startup’s efficiency figures. Although no evidence has surfaced to support these doubts, the criticism highlights growing tensions between U.S. and Chinese AI companies vying for dominance.

As DeepSeek dominated headlines, industry watchers awaited a response from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Nearly 24 hours later, Altman finally shared his thoughts.

Altman Breaks Silence

In a post on X, Altman described DeepSeek’s R1 model as “impressive, particularly around what they’re able to deliver for the price.” He also welcomed the competition:

“We will obviously deliver much better models and also it’s legit invigorating to have a new competitor! we will pull up some releases,” Altman said.

deepseek’s r1 is an impressive model, particularly around what they’re able to deliver for the price.

we will obviously deliver much better models and also it’s legit invigorating to have a new competitor! we will pull up some releases.

— Sam Altman (@sama) January 28, 2025

Altman doubled down on OpenAI’s commitment to advancing AI:

“But mostly we are excited to continue to execute on our research roadmap and believe more compute is more important now than ever before to succeed at our mission. The world is going to want to use a LOT of AI and really be quite amazed by the next-gen models coming. Look forward to bringing you all AGI and beyond.”

look forward to bringing you all AGI and beyond.

— Sam Altman (@sama) January 28, 2025

Industry Reactions and Nvidia’s Take

Altman wasn’t the only one to respond. Nvidia weighed in, commending DeepSeek’s advancements in creating cheaper and more energy-efficient large language models (LLMs). In a statement to Bloomberg, the chipmaker called it an “excellent AI advancement” and highlighted the model’s compliance with U.S. technology export controls.

“DeepSeek’s work illustrates how new models can be created,” Nvidia said, referring to its Test Time Scaling technique. The statement also emphasized that the models were built using publicly available compute resources within export regulations.

Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s Ian King noted that Nvidia’s remarks seemed to dismiss suspicions raised by some analysts and experts who questioned whether the Chinese startup had genuinely achieved its claimed breakthrough.

The Bigger Picture

DeepSeek’s rise underscores a growing rift between global AI players and a reshaping of the competitive landscape. With competition heating up and efficiency becoming a key factor, companies like OpenAI and Nvidia are doubling down on innovation to maintain their edge. Whether DeepSeek’s claims hold up under scrutiny or not, one thing is clear: the AI race just got more intense.