 "'Not possible to build AI with $10 mn': Sam Altman's old claim resurfaces")
OpenAI’s co-founder, Sam Altman, is facing criticism after a video from June 2023 resurfaced, in which he dismissed the idea of creating a competitive AI model with a $10 million budget, calling it “hopeless.”
The clip, filmed during an Economic Times Conversations event, shows Altman bluntly stating, “It’s totally hopeless to compete with us on training foundation models.”
His remarks are attracting fresh criticism following the rise of DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup that has recently become a major competitor in the AI field. DeepSeek’s chatbot, DeepSeek R1, has shaken up the industry by becoming the most downloaded free app on Apple’s US App Store.
DeepSeek is impressive: Sam Altman
In response to DeepSeek's success, Altman admitted that the Chinese startup’s model is impressive given its low cost. He tweeted, “DeepSeek’s R1 is an impressive model, particularly around what they’re able to deliver for the price.”
Remarkably, the Chinese company created this chatbot for just $5.6 million— far cheaper than the multi-million-dollar budgets of American tech giants like OpenAI and Meta. DeepSeek’s AI model is 20 to 50 times more affordable than OpenAI's, depending on the task. ALSO READ: Alibaba unveils Qwen 2.5 AI model, claims it outperforms DeepSeek-V3
DeepSeek shakes the world of AI
The success of DeepSeek R1 has caught many in the AI community, challenging the idea that powerful AI requires massive budgets. Entrepreneur Arnaud Bertrand shared the video of Altman’s remarks on social media, pointing out how ironic the comments sound now. “This is pretty hilarious in retrospect,” he said, referring to DeepSeek’s surprising success.
The resurfaced video quickly went viral, with social media users expressing their surprise and amusement. One person wrote, “Funny how ‘totally hopeless’ turned into real competition in just over a year.” Another commenter noted, “The AI space is moving fast—centralised control is breaking down, but who defines the future of AI governance?”
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Still, Altman remains confident that OpenAI will lead the AI race. He added, “We will obviously deliver much better models and also it’s legit invigorating to have a new competitor!”
DeepSeek challenges the idea of big budgets for AI
DeepSeek’s rise challenges the belief that only companies with huge budgets can develop powerful AI models. Their achievement shows that AI innovation can come from smaller, more affordable projects. Nvidia, which provides the GPUs for DeepSeek, has also praised the company’s work, calling it “an excellent advancement” and a prime example of how new AI models can be built using widely available computing resources.
As DeepSeek’s success continues to gain attention, the question arises: Could the future of AI be shaped by smaller companies offering more affordable and efficient solutions? The AI industry is certainly moving fast, and it remains to be seen whether OpenAI and other US firms will be able to maintain their dominance in the face of emerging competition.