China’s AI Strategy: DeepSeek’s R2 Agent to Challenge OpenAI

DeepSeek is set to reshape the AI landscape with its upcoming AI agent. The Hangzhou-based startup is preparing to launch a next-generation AI capable of executing multi-step tasks with minimal user input and improving autonomously over time. This marks a significant shift towards agentic AI, a field where US leaders like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft have already made strides. DeepSeek's founder, Liang Wenfeng, aims for a Q4 release, positioning the new system as a successor to R1, which launched in January and competed with OpenAI in benchmark tests despite its modest development cost.