DeepSeek-V3 can be outperform by new version of AI model released from Alibaba

Chinese tech giant Alibaba made a surprising move on Wednesday by launching an upgraded version of its Qwen 2.5 artificial intelligence model, claiming it surpasses the highly regarded DeepSeek-V3, according to a report from Reuters.

The timing of the AI model’s release, coinciding with the first day of the Lunar New Year—a period when most of China is on holiday—signals the intense competition in the industry. This urgency appears to be a direct response to the meteoric rise of DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup that has disrupted the market, challenging not only domestic rivals but also global AI leaders.

Alibaba’s cloud computing division made bold claims in an official WeChat announcement, stating that “Qwen 2.5-Max outperforms almost across the board GPT-4o, DeepSeek-V3, and Llama-3.1-405B.” These models represent the latest advancements from leading AI developers such as OpenAI and Meta, making Alibaba’s assertion a significant statement in the AI race.

The rapid developments in China’s AI sector were further fueled when DeepSeek introduced its AI assistant powered by the DeepSeek-V3 model on January 10. Just ten days later, on January 20, they launched the R1 model, a high-performance, budget-friendly AI system that sent shockwaves across the industry.

DeepSeek’s swift advancements triggered immediate reactions from competitors. Only two days after the launch of DeepSeek-R1, ByteDance—the parent company of TikTok—announced an upgrade to its flagship AI model, boasting that it outperformed OpenAI’s o1 in AIME, a benchmark test evaluating AI comprehension and responsiveness to intricate instructions.

Earlier in May 2024, the introduction of DeepSeek-V2 had already caused turbulence, sparking a fierce AI price war in China. In response, Alibaba’s cloud unit slashed prices on various models by as much as 97%, prompting other companies to follow suit with aggressive pricing strategies.

Despite the ongoing AI price battles, DeepSeek’s founder, Liang Wenfeng, downplayed their significance in an interview with Chinese media outlet Waves in July. He emphasized that the company remains focused on its ultimate ambition—achieving Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)—rather than engaging in competitive pricing wars.