Firms in multiple sectors across China are looking to fully integrate the latest artificial intelligence software offered by Chinese start-up DeepSeek into their operations as they aim boost productivity and improve service quality after the AI large language model made its head-turning debut at the start of the year.
The Chinese tech company was thrust into the global spotlight last month after it launched its latest AI model DeepSeek-R1, which gained widespread attention for its impressive inference performance, cost-effectiveness, and open-source advantages.
Seeking to harness its potential, many top Chinese tech and telecommunications giants have already been adopting DeepSeek into their platforms, including in social media apps, internet search engines and cloud services. Now, the groundbreaking AI software is also making its mark in various other fields, including in manufacturing, finance, and even healthcare.
In the energy sector, China's National Oil and Gas Pipeline Network Group (PipeChina) is using the DeepSeek AI model to improve operations such as intelligent regulation and pipeline safety monitoring. By using AI algorithms, the group has enhanced the precision of their energy transmission forecasts and control processes, which will help to ensure a reliable energy supply during the winter.
"With the deployment of DeepSeek and other large AI models, PipeChina's AI applications have started to show positive results. The time it takes to generate production plans at the oil and gas control center has been reduced from four hours to just minutes, with a 10-percent improvement in accuracy. Besides, the process of simulating the creation of gas storage space in salt caverns, which previously took several days, now only takes one hour thanks to AI integration," said Xu Kun, deputy general manager of a subsidiary company of PipeChina.
Intelligent manufacturers have also optimized product performance thanks to DeepSeek. Chinese telecom equipment maker ZTE has embedded the AI model into their smartphones, offering users a seamless experience without switching between AI interfaces.
"By integrating DeepSeek, we have developed a function akin to a 'multi-expert system', where each (AI) expert is responsible for a specific task. Users can access various AI functionalities through a single interface instead of having to switch between multiple apps," said Ni Fei, president of ZTE's Terminal Business Unit.
DeepSeek has also been deployed in hospital systems, where it can generate diagnostic opinions for various diseases in a matter of seconds and also play a further role in the medical field by helping accelerate drug development processes.
In the financial sector, DeepSeek is being utilized for market forecasting, risk assessment, and fraud detection, ensuring a more reliable environment for investment.
"AI, as the core driver of the new technological revolution, is deeply integrated into various sectors such as healthcare, finance, government affairs, and manufacturing, leading to diverse application scenarios," said Han Zizhe, a senior analyst at the AI and big data research center of leading Chinese consultancy firm CCID Consulting.
Meanwhile, several Chinese cities including the southern metropolises of Shenzhen and Guangzhou are beginning to integrate DeepSeek into their government systems, with many more reportedly planning to leverage the AI model to enhance public data collection, management, sharing and application.
Chinese firms look to integrate DeepSeek AI tools to boost productivity, service quality
