DeepSeek, the Chinese AI start-up whose low-cost model stunned the world last year, launched a preview of its highly anticipated new model, the V4, on Friday.
The pro version of V4 outperforms other open-source models in world-knowledge benchmarks, trailing only Google’s Gemini Pro 3.1 which is a closed-source model, DeepSeek said.
The V4 also comes in a lower-cost flash version. The preview versions allow the company to incorporate real-world feedback. DeepSeek did not provide a timeline for when the model is expected to be finalised.
Owned by China’s High-Flyer Capital Management, DeepSeek is aiming to raise funds at a valuation exceeding US$20-billion, according to a report by The Information this month, which also said that tech giants Alibaba and Tencent were in discussions to take stakes.
DeepSeek has been the subject of much controversy, accused by Washington and US rivals of improper and illegal behaviour several times.
On Thursday, the White House accused China of stealing US AI labs’ intellectual property on an industrial scale, threatening to strain relations ahead of a summit between US and Chinese leaders next month.
Read: Why AI chatbots are a legal liability waiting to happen
The Chinese embassy in Washington said it opposes “the baseless allegations”, adding that Beijing “attaches great importance to the protection of intellectual property rights”.
Huawei Technologies, meanwhile, said its Ascend supernode based on Ascend 950 AI chips would fully support Deepseek’s V4 versions. — Ethan Wang and Eduardo Baptista, (c) 2026 Reuters
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