Since January of this year, China has been experiencing an unprecedented surge of interest in artificial intelligence. The launch of the new platform Manus by the company Butterfly Effect generated such overwhelming demand that its registration website crashed within hours. Developers claim that Manus surpasses the renowned ChatGPT from OpenAI in its capabilities, and access is now granted exclusively by invitation. Resellers of registration codes have already emerged on the black market.
The surge of interest in platforms like Manus is a natural continuation of the boom sparked by the breakthrough of the startup DeepSeek, whose technology promises effective and more accessible alternatives to Western counterparts. The Hang Seng Tech Index, which includes leading Chinese companies, has risen by more than 40% in just a few months, outpacing the growth rates of American equivalents.
DeepSeek's popularity has attracted the attention of numerous Chinese companies that are actively integrating this technology into their operations. These include automakers, banks, government institutions, and service sector companies. Even tech giants like Tencent and Alibaba are incorporating DeepSeek’s solutions into their products and allocating multi-billion-dollar investments to expand cloud infrastructure. Alibaba plans to invest $53 billion in expanding its data centers.
Government agencies, universities, and hospitals are exploring AI applications to enhance party operations and address everyday citizen needs through mobile applications.
However, analysts are urging caution, warning of the potential for a "bubble." Some venture capital investors admit that they are funding startups with the intention of making a quick exit within just a few months. Despite the optimism, analysts at Morningstar believe that an overestimation of DeepSeek’s capabilities could lead to investor disappointment.
Additional risks stem from restricted access to advanced semiconductors. While Chinese companies can currently purchase lower-performance Nvidia chips, this is only a temporary solution. Domestic Chinese chip designs still lag behind Western counterparts in performance, and full replacement of foreign solutions could take years. U.S. restrictions may lead to a shortage of critical components, potentially undermining China’s rapidly growing AI sector.