AP Technology
AP-Technology
Did DeepSeek copy ChatGPT to make new AI chatbot? Trump adviser thinks so
Did the upstart Chinese tech company DeepSeek copy ChatGPT to make the artificial intelligence technology that shook Wall Street this week? That’s what ChatGPT maker OpenAI is suggesting, along with U.S. President Donald Trump’s top AI adviser. Neither has disclosed specific evidence of intellectual property theft but the comments could fuel a reexamination of some of the assumptions that led to a panic in the U.S. over DeepSeek’s advancements. OpenAI said in a statement that China-based companies “are constantly trying to distill the models of leading U.S. AI companies” but didn’t call out DeepSeek specifically. DeepSeek didn’t return a request for comment.
DeepSeek says it built its chatbot cheap. What does that mean for AI’s energy needs and the climate?
Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek stunned markets and AI experts with its claim that it built its immensely popular chatbot at a fraction of the cost of those made by American tech titans. That immediately called into question the billions of dollars U.S. tech companies are spending on a massive expansion of energy-hungry data centers they say are needed to unlock the next wave of artificial intelligence. Could this new AI mean the world will need significantly less energy for this technology than everyone thinks? The answer has profound implications for the climate crisis. Artificial intelligence uses massive amounts of energy, much of it from the burning of fossil fuels which causes climate change.
General purpose AI could lead to array of new risks, experts say in report ahead of AI summit
LONDON (AP) — A new report says advanced artificial intelligence systems have the potential to create extreme new risks, such as fueling widespread job losses, enabling terrorism or running amok. The international report released Wednesday catalogs the range of dangers posed by the technology. It was being released ahead of a major AI summit in Paris next month. The paper is backed by 30 countries including the U.S. and China, even as the two countries battle over AI supremacy. The study’s lead author says the report is a “synthesis” of existing research intended to help guide officials working on drawing up guardrails for the rapidly advancing technology.
Microsoft reports 10% quarterly profit growth as it works to show AI investments paying off
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Microsoft Corp. said Wednesday that its profit for the October-December quarter grew 10% from the same time last year as it works to capitalize on the huge amounts of money it has spent to advance its artificial intelligence technology. The company reported net income for the quarter of $24.1 billion, or $3.23 per share, beating Wall Street expectations of $3.11 per share. The Redmond, Washington-based software maker posted revenue of $69.6 billion in the quarter, up 12% from the previous year, also beating expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet Research expected Microsoft to generate revenue of $68.87 billion, and currently project revenue of $69.81 billion for the January-March quarter.
AI-assisted works can get copyright with enough human creativity, says US copyright office
Artists can copyright works they made with the help of artificial intelligence, according to a new report by the U.S. Copyright Office that could help clear the way for the use of AI tools in Hollywood, the music industry and other creative fields. The nation’s copyright office receives about half a million copyright applications per year covering millions of individual works. It has increasingly been asked to register works that are AI-generated. The report issued Wednesday clarifies the office’s approach as one based on what the top U.S. copyright official describes as the “centrality of human creativity” in authoring a work that warrants copyright protections.
DeepSeek’s new AI chatbot and ChatGPT answer sensitive questions about China differently
HONG KONG (AP) — Chinese tech startup DeepSeek’s new artificial intelligence chatbot has sparked discussions about the competition between China and the U.S. in AI development, with many users flocking to test the rival of OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Observers are eager to see whether the Chinese company has matched America’s leading AI companies at a fraction of the cost. The chatbot’s ultimate impact on the AI industry is still unclear, but it appears to censor answers to sensitive topics, a practice commonly seen on China’s internet. For example, when it was asked on Tuesday about Beijing’s bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square in 1989, it said the event was beyond its scope and suggested talking about something else.
DeepSeek has rattled the AI industry. Here’s a quick look at other Chinese AI models
HONG KONG (AP) — The Chinese artificial intelligence firm DeepSeek has rattled markets with claims its latest AI model performs on a par with those of OpenAI, despite using less advanced but more energy-efficient computer chips. DeepSeek’s emergence has raised concerns among some experts and investors that China may have overtaken the U.S. in the artificial intelligence race despite restrictions on its access to the most advanced chips. DeepSeek is one of many Chinese companies working on AI to make China the world leader in the field by 2030 and best the U.S. in the battle for technological supremacy. Like the U.S., China is investing heavily in artificial intelligence, semiconductors and processing capacity.
Elon Musk’s X partners with Visa on payment service in an effort to become an ‘everything app,’
NEW YORK (AP) — X is teaming up with Visa to soon offer a system for real-time payments on the social media platform. Visa is the first partner for the platform’s “X Money Account” service, which is set to launch later this year, according to X CEO Linda Yaccarino. The prospect of X becoming an “everything app” has been floated around for some time. Before officially closing the deal to purchase the platform for $44 billion back in 2022, Elon Musk expressed interest in creating his own version of something similar to China’s WeChat — a “super app” that does video chats, messaging, streaming and payments.
At least 11 Baltic cables have been damaged in 15 months, prompting NATO to up its guard
ABOARD A FRENCH NAVY FLIGHT OVER THE BALTIC SEA (AP) — NATO is deploying eyes in the sky and on the Baltic Sea to protect cables and pipelines that stitch together the nine countries with shores on Baltic waters. The Associated Press rode aboard a French Navy surveillance plane missioned by NATO that used a powerful camera to zoom in on cargo ships. The flight’s presence in the skies above the strategic sea, combined with naval patrols, also sent a message that the NATO alliance is ratcheting up its guard against suspected attempts to sabotage underwater infrastructure. But Western intelligence officials told AP that recent damage was most likely accidental, seemingly caused by ships’ anchors.
Nvidia faces a reckoning as Chinese upstart raises questions about Wall Street’s darling
NEW YORK (AP) — The superstar run for Nvidia’s stock the last few years has been astonishing. So was its tumble Monday, which caused $595 billion in wealth to vanish. Nvidia became a household name as its stock more than tripled in 2023 and then more than doubled in 2024. It grew into a $3 trillion-plus behemoth and traded places with titans like Apple to become the most valuable company on Wall Street. But that all came to a screeching halt after a Chinese upstart said it had developed a large-language model that could perform like ChatGPT and other U.S. rivals, but by using far less computing power. Can Wall Street’s darling bounce back?
