China’s rising AI player DeepSeek, which made global headlines last year with its low-cost model, has now released a preview of its next-generation V4 system, as it looks to take on some of the biggest names in artificial intelligence.
According to the company, the V4 Pro version performs strongly on world-knowledge benchmarks, ranking ahead of most open-source rivals and trailing only Gemini-Pro-3.1, a closed-source model developed by Google. DeepSeek has also introduced a more affordable “flash” variant, with both versions currently available in preview as the firm gathers user feedback ahead of a full release. No official timeline for the final rollout has been announced.
Backed by High-Flyer Capital Management, DeepSeek is reportedly seeking fresh funding at a valuation exceeding $20 billion. Media reports suggest Chinese tech majors Alibaba and Tencent have held discussions about potential investments.
The launch comes amid ongoing geopolitical tensions around artificial intelligence. The White House recently accused China of large-scale intellectual property violations involving US AI research, claims that Beijing has denied. The Chinese Embassy in Washington rejected the allegations, stating that China places strong emphasis on protecting intellectual property rights.
The developments highlight how competition in AI is increasingly intersecting with global politics, even as companies push ahead with new model releases.
