After China’s DeepSeek Breakthrough, Time to ‘Rethink the Equation’ in AI

DeepSeek, and the Trump administration’s moves to repeal guardrails on the technology and boost investment in U.S. AI infrastructure. For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a 109-billion-Euro AI investment ahead of the Paris summit, and said that Europe will cut back on AI regulation to “resynchronize with the rest of the world.”

Before the summit, The Cipher Brief spoke with Gilman Louie, a co-founder and early CEO of In-Q-Tel, the pioneering technology investment firm funded by the CIA, about the burgeoning global AI race. Louie suggested that the Chinese need to solve for a “scarcity” of compute abilities caused by U.S. export restrictions may have actually spurred the innovation at DeepSeek. He added that such innovation will further push the “accessibility” of AI, and serve as one more catalyst in the AI race. Louie also spoke about President Donald Trump’s newly-announced U.S. sovereign wealth fund, which he said could be a key tool to fund AI development. 
Louie spoke with Cipher Brief CEO Suzanne Kelly. Their conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity. You can also watch the discussion on our YouTube channel.