China’s AI competition strategy: Wide dispersion, cheap tokens (opens in new tab)

China’s flagship AI company DeepSeek released its V4 model in April, with a promotional price that puts it at a mere fraction of the cost of its North American competitors’ models. This reflects a wider trend in China’s AI sector: Instead of competing directly with companies like OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, who offer state of the art services at a premium, Chinese companies are pursuing a strategy of wide diffusion and cheap tokens to gain market share across the world. For Europe, this may...