Anduril founder Palmer Luckey recently provided insights into DeepSeek’s AI capabilities and drone technology during an appearance on “Claman Countdown.”
David Sacks Raises Concerns Over DeepSeek’s AI Costs
David Sacks, the former AI advisor to President Donald Trump, has raised questions about the financials behind DeepSeek’s AI development. Sacks claims that the Chinese startup spent significantly more than the reported $5.567 million to train its DeepSeek-V3 AI model, which is said to rival U.S.-developed AI systems.
DeepSeek recently caused a stir in the U.S. tech sector by announcing that it had spent just $5.567 million to train DeepSeek-V3. However, leading semiconductor analyst Dylan Patel revealed in a separate report that the company actually invested over $1 billion in its computing infrastructure. DeepSeek clarified that the $5.567 million figure only covers the official training of DeepSeek-V3 and excludes costs related to prior research, architectural experiments, and algorithmic development.
Palmer Luckey Criticizes Media Coverage of DeepSeek
Palmer Luckey, founder of Anduril, criticized American media for uncritically reporting DeepSeek’s $5 million claim. He argued that much of the company’s infrastructure and spending remain undisclosed, and the media failed to scrutinize the broader implications. “The issue is that this narrative was specifically crafted to harm American companies,” Luckey said on Tech Word News’ “Claman Countdown.” He added, “The American media has been mindlessly repeating this without considering the bigger picture.”
DeepSeek’s AI Chatbot Sparks Debate
DeepSeek’s AI model has demonstrated capabilities comparable to prominent chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Meta’s Llama, but at a fraction of the development cost. The company has also reportedly been utilizing NVIDIA chips with reduced capacity, sparking further debate in the tech community.
U.S. Investigates DeepSeek’s Use of Restricted AI Chips
Reports suggest that the U.S. is investigating whether DeepSeek used restricted AI chips in its operations. These revelations have caused significant concern within the American technology sector.
Luckey Warns Against Falling for Chinese Propaganda
Luckey emphasized the importance of recognizing China’s AI advancements as a legitimate competitive threat without succumbing to propaganda. “We can acknowledge that Chinese AI is a real challenge without losing our minds and falling for CCP [Chinese Communist Party] narratives,” he said.
Key Takeaways:
- DeepSeek claims to have trained its AI model for $5.567 million, but analysts suggest the actual cost exceeds $1 billion.
- Palmer Luckey and David Sacks have criticized the lack of scrutiny in reporting DeepSeek’s claims.
- The U.S. is reportedly investigating DeepSeek’s use of restricted AI chips.
