Who wins out from DeepSeek's success?
Firms focused on AI at the edge and open source LLMs could reap massive rewards from the Chinese startup's industry upset


As the dust settles on DeepSeek, we’ve had the chance to see who walked away from the impact it had on the stock market unscathed.
Apple and Meta did not undergo the same rapid stock shocks as Nvidia, Microsoft, and others in the immediate aftermath of the DeepSeek R1 launch – the latter has actually seen a healthy surge in the past few weeks.
Why is this? And who actually wins thanks to DeepSeek?
In this episode, Rory speaks once again to ITPro’s news and analysis editor Ross Kelly to analyze who stands to benefit the most from DeepSeek.
Highlights
"I mean, it's the ecosystem that surrounds it that benefits meta here, like you said around, you know, their social media platforms, which have been the company's bread and butter for well over a decade. At this point, it is the same on the proprietary side of things, that ecosystem aspect"
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"I think saying they were slow to jump into the AI race is a bit unfair. I think it was quintessential Apple style. You know, they're not going to make rash decisions. Tim Cook has famously spoken about this over the last two years, the fact that they weren't going to dive head first into what was essentially, at that point, an industry that was in flux, and there was a lot of hype, a lot of hyperbole, and they've went about their business very intelligently."
"When you look at the hardware aspect of it, what we were talking about around the potential security and data privacy protection benefits from running on device, I think this is an area, again, where deep seek is going to have a lot of success. It's an area that Apple has already having a lot of success in, and we see the market moving towards that as well."
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Footnotes
- Chinese AI firm DeepSeek has Silicon Valley flustered
- The DeepSeek bombshell has been a wakeup call for US tech giants
- DeepSeek R1 has taken the world by storm, but security experts claim it has 'critical safety flaws' that you need to know about
- Looking to use DeepSeek R1 in the EU? This new study shows it’s missing key criteria to comply with the EU AI Act
- Apple’s generative AI slumber is ending – Microsoft and Google should be on alert
- Meta Quest Pro preview: Meet Meta's 'laptop killer'
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Rory Bathgate is Features and Multimedia Editor at ITPro, overseeing all in-depth content and case studies. He can also be found co-hosting the ITPro Podcast with Jane McCallion, swapping a keyboard for a microphone to discuss the latest learnings with thought leaders from across the tech sector.
In his free time, Rory enjoys photography, video editing, and good science fiction. After graduating from the University of Kent with a BA in English and American Literature, Rory undertook an MA in Eighteenth-Century Studies at King’s College London. He joined ITPro in 2022 as a graduate, following four years in student journalism. You can contact Rory at rory.bathgate@futurenet.com or on LinkedIn.
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