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Aarian Marshall

Jan 30, 2025 7:30 AM

DeepSeek Has Taught AI Startups a Lesson Automakers Learned Years Ago

In the DeepSeek AI saga, global technologists are relearning the lessons of the Chinese auto boom.

Photo-Illustration: Wired Staff; Sun Shijie/Getty Images

This week, some auto industry observers felt a creeping sense of déjà vu. Seemingly out of nowhere, a Chinese firm made international headlines by besting Western companies at the tech they supposedly invented.

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Comments (2)

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Global cooperation beats xenophobia every time. We want the best and brightest to come here and/or collaborate globally via academia and government. Trump and Republicans are putting the US in jeopardy by attacking liberals and shutting down global trade and cooperation. This makes us weaker and sets the state for future wars.
Hear, hear
The Chinese EVs are coming. Maybe not today or tomorrow or next week. But, they will come and they will eradicate the domestic auto industry. AI might take a little longer. The barbarians are at the gate.

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Aarian Marshall is a staff writer covering transportation and cities. Before joining WIRED, she wrote for The Atlantic’s CityLab. Marshall is based in Seattle, where she’s learning to love rain.

Staff Writer

TopicsChina Electric Vehicles DeepSeek manufacturing cars

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