Chinese artificial intelligence developer, DeepSeek, made its first public appearance in nearly a year at the World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, Zhejiang Province, where its senior researcher, Chen Deli, voiced concerns about the long-term implications of AI on human society.
Speaking alongside executives from five other leading Chinese AI firms collectively known as the “six little dragons,” Chen said that while AI presents short-term benefits for human productivity, it also poses serious risks of job displacement within the next decade.
Chen cautioned that as AI technologies become increasingly sophisticated, they could replace most human tasks in the next 10 to 20 years, creating significant societal challenges. He urged technology companies to act as “defenders” to mitigate the potential negative impacts of AI, emphasizing that although he remains optimistic about technological progress, he is “pessimistic about its social consequences.” His remarks marked a rare public insight into DeepSeek’s stance on the ethical and economic implications of artificial intelligence.
DeepSeek first rose to global prominence in January after launching a low-cost AI model that outperformed leading U.S. systems. Since then, the company has maintained a low profile, with only its founder and CEO, Liang Wenfeng, appearing publicly in February during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Despite avoiding major technology conferences since then, DeepSeek has been celebrated by the Chinese government as a symbol of national innovation and resilience amid growing technological competition with the United States.
Although the company has not released a major new model since January, it continues to make headlines with incremental upgrades. Its V3 experimental model, unveiled in September, is said to be more efficient and capable of processing longer text sequences.
DeepSeek has also become a central player in China’s efforts to build a self-sufficient AI ecosystem, with local chip manufacturers such as Cambricon and Huawei producing compatible hardware. Notably, its August announcement of an AI model optimized for Chinese-made chips led to a sharp rise in domestic chip stock prices, further cementing DeepSeek’s influence in the country’s technological ambitions.