In this Cloud Wars Special Report, Bob Evans, founder, Cloud Wars, and John Siefert, CEO, Dynamic Communities & Cloud Wars, discuss DeepSeek’s groundbreaking advancements in AI, the implications for the cloud industry, and how these innovations could reshape enterprise technology.
Highlights
DeepSeek Disruption and Initial Reactions (00:19)
John introduces the topic of DeepSeek and its recent impact on the AI world, noting the model’s significant cost advantages over major tech companies. He references Marc Andreessen’s comparison of DeepSeek to the Sputnik moment. Bob says that “smart people, I think, are going to look at this and say, ‘Hey, you know what? Maybe the real wake-up call here is, let’s not think that the path we’re currently taking — which is $100 billion is the entry fee to get into AI training — maybe it doesn’t have to be $100 billion.”
Cloud Wars Top 10 Companies’ Reactions (02:10)
Microsoft has quickly adopted DeepSeek models on Azure, showcasing its integration on LinkedIn and the company’s website. Other Cloud Wars Top 10 companies including Oracle are making noise about DeepSeek that suggest a competitive yet collaborative response. John and Bob discuss the strategic view of embracing DeepSeek within existing cloud platforms.
Competition and Innovation in AI (04:20)
Oracle’s Safra Catz made a comment at a recent Oracle CloudWorld event to the effect that “competition is going to make everybody better.” Microsoft’s Satya Nadella contextualized DeepSeek within the broader AI landscape, including Moore’s Law and compute infrastructure advancements. Bob shares AI strategies and perspectives from Arvind Krishna of IBM and Marc Benioff of Salesforce.
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DeepSeek’s Impact on Business Efficiency (07:19)
John and Bob agree that DeepSeek could offer significant cost and efficiency benefits for businesses, especially in agentic orchestration. DeepSeek has the potential to undercut the credibility of traditional AI models. Bob shares a historical analogy about a Nobel Prize winner who worked for AT&T and how he made a critical breakthrough, suggesting DeepSeek could offer a more efficient approach to AI development while going against conventional thinking.
Upcoming AI Agent and Copilot Summit (09:42)
John brings up the AI Agent and Copilot Summit in San Diego from March 17 to 19. Speakers and executives attending the summit include Microsoft MVPs, C-level executives from mid-market and enterprise companies, and best-selling author Christopher Lochhead, who is “going to be talking about ‘Hey, you know, what do our careers start to look like? You’re in a post-AI-world, and how can you build a legendary one?'”
DeepSeek’s Future and Rapid Technological Change (11:25)
Bob and John speculate on DeepSeek’s long-term impact, considering its potential to evolve rapidly within the fast-paced AI landscape. The conversation concludes with mutual excitement for the upcoming AI Agent and Copilot Summit where John says they’re going to “own the three things that everybody’s trying to figure out, right? What are the opportunities? What the heck is the impact going to be? And then what outcomes can I expect?”
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