News Brief
DeepSeek’s AI Breakthrough Sparks Global Rethink, India Sees Opportunity
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Chinese startup DeepSeek has triggered a dramatic rethink on artificial intelligence spending worldwide, proving that high-quality AI models can be developed at a fraction of the cost previously assumed necessary.
India’s IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has welcomed the disruption, drawing parallels between DeepSeek’s frugal approach and India’s own efforts to build a local AI ecosystem under the $1.25 billion IndiaAI mission, reported NDTV.
Addressing an event in Odisha, Vaishnaw defended the Indian government’s AI investment, countering scepticism over the ambitious IndiaAI initiative.
"Some people question the amount of investments the government has committed in (IndiaAI mission). You have seen what DeepSeek has done? $5.5 million and a very very powerful model. Because, the use of brain," he remarked.
DeepSeek’s AI assistant, reportedly developed in just two months at a cost of under $6 million, has challenged industry beliefs about the cost barrier in AI development.
It leveraged Nvidia’s less-advanced H800 chips, yet still delivered remarkable performance.
DeepSeek’s success has disrupted assumptions that China lags behind US firms like OpenAI.
Vaishnaw’s remarks also appeared to take aim at Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who had previously expressed scepticism about India’s ability to develop a significant AI model within a $10 million budget.
"The way this works is we're going to tell you it's totally hopeless to compete with us on training foundation models. You shouldn't try. And it's your job to like try anyway. And I believe both of those things," Altman had stated during his India visit last year.
His comments are now resurfacing on social media platforms like X, as DeepSeek’s success challenges these notions.
Altman is set to visit India again on 5 February, at a time when OpenAI is locked in a legal battle with digital news and book publishers over copyright violations.
With DeepSeek proving that cost-efficient AI models are possible, India may see this as a good moment to push ahead with its own AI ambitions, countering the dominance of Western AI giants.
