Reuters
Beijing, Updated At: 11:09 AM Apr 24, 2026 IST
Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek, whose low-cost model drew global attention last year, on Friday launched a preview of its much-anticipated new model, V4.
DeepSeek said the pro version of V4 outperforms other open-source models on world-knowledge benchmarks, trailing only Google’s closed-source Gemini-Pro-3.1.
The V4 also will be offered in a lower-cost “flash” version. Preview releases are intended to let the company gather real-world feedback as it develops the model.
DeepSeek did not give a timeline for when V4 will be finalized.
Owned by High-Flyer Capital Management, DeepSeek is reportedly seeking to raise funds at a valuation above $20 billion, according to The Information, which also said Alibaba and Tencent were in talks to take stakes.
The company has faced controversy and repeated accusations from Washington and U.S. rivals of improper and illegal behaviour.
On Thursday, the White House accused China of stealing U.S. AI labs’ intellectual property on an industrial scale, a claim that could strain ties ahead of a planned summit between U.S. and Chinese leaders. The Chinese Embassy in Washington rejected the allegations as baseless and said Beijing attaches great importance to protecting intellectual property rights.
