Some AI researchers hailed DeepSeek’s R1 as a breakthrough on the same level as DeepMind’s AlphaZero, a 2017 model that became superhuman at the board games Chess and Go by purely playing against itself and improving, rather than observing any human games.

The little-known artificial intelligence firm has emphasized research, even as it emerged as the brainchild of a hedge fund.

DeepSeek’s AI products have shaken up the American stock market and tech industry—but some experts are questioning how big of a threat the Chinese company really is.