DeepSeek Sparks Optimism Among Canadian AI Leaders

TORONTO — Canadian leaders in artificial intelligence are viewing the recent developments surrounding DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup, with optimism. DeepSeek's chatbot launch caused a dip in tech stocks on Monday, prompting concerns over its potential impact on larger companies in the industry.

Those involved in Canada’s AI sector believe that DeepSeek's capabilities, reported to be on par with or even surpassing OpenAI’s ChatGPT while being 95% cheaper to operate, showcase that there is still significant room for innovation. Julien Billot, the CEO of a consortium called Scale AI, emphasized that the competition is still very much alive.

Although many U.S. AI companies have reported early successes and have poured billions into AI technology recently, Billot remarked, “The game is not over.” He noted that the recent announcement of up to US$500 billion investment from companies like OpenAI, SoftBank, and Oracle into a new venture named Stargate, which aims to evolve AI infrastructure in the U.S., does not overshadow the potential for breakthroughs to arise outside the U.S.

According to Billot, DeepSeek's recent achievements amidst heavy U.S. funding underscore that groundbreaking advancements can emerge without necessarily having huge financial backing. He stated, “It’s very encouraging because it means money is not everything... clever people can do something different with less money, and that’s something Canada can take inspiration from.”

DeepSeek reportedly developed its assistant in just two months at a cost of around US$6 million, utilizing some of Nvidia’s less powerful H800 semiconductors compared to the more advanced processors required by other AI systems. Sébastien Paquet, vice president of machine learning at Coveo, an AI-powered search company, expressed that this development marks a significant reduction in the resources necessary for training top-performing AI models.

Paquet added that the open-source nature of DeepSeek’s chatbot is likely to foster competition by making it more accessible for other developers. “They’ve shown that we can actually have models that cost less to build, so we might get more of them in the future,” he remarked.

In Canada, many experts, including Billot, are optimistic about the country’s existing AI talent and resources, which may pave the way for Canadian companies to emerge as strong contenders in the AI landscape. Notable Canadian players anticipated to make waves include Cohere, a Toronto-based company focused on enterprise AI solutions.

When discussing the implications of DeepSeek, Aidan Gomez, co-founder and CEO of Cohere, stressed that the future of AI lies in efficiency. He stated, “It’s not about unlimited resources but about smart, efficient solutions,” reinforcing that the shift in thinking is resonating throughout the entire industry.

Marc Low, the director of innovation and emerging technology at KPMG in Canada, echoed this sentiment, suggesting that DeepSeek's innovations could significantly benefit Canadian businesses by lowering the barriers to AI technology. He estimated that the cost for querying DeepSeek’s service could be minimal, hinting at a possible deflationary trend in the generative AI costs.

However, Sébastien Paquet cautioned users to be careful when using DeepSeek, which is currently leading the list of popular free apps on Apple in Canada. He highlighted concerns regarding the privacy policy, which permits the company to collect various personal data, including names, emails, and even chat histories. Paquet advised, “I wouldn’t use it with sensitive data at all, but just to ask for a song or something like that, it’s OK.”

AI, Canada, Technology