Founded just 20 months ago in China, artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek has demonstrated the inaccuracy of performance metrics touted by tech giants, causing a seismic shift in the market value of leading technology and energy companies in the United States.
Utilizing open-source software, the Chinese startup has achieved highly efficient results that have reshaped industry expectations and created a ripple effect by erasing some $2 trillion worth of market cap in U.S. stocks this week.
DeepSeek’s AI model has sent shock waves through the market valuations of American tech and energy behemoths. The secret to their success lies in an AI model that delivers superior results using less computational power and reduced energy consumption.
DeepSeek’s highly efficient AI model has led to significant declines in the market valuations of U.S.-based technology, software and energy companies. Particularly in the energy sector, shares of natural gas producers, power plant owners, and coal and uranium miners have seen notable drops. This development has triggered a reevaluation of expectations concerning the high energy demands of AI development.
In the technology sector, companies like Nvidia, which have made substantial investments in AI infrastructure, saw their shares fall by up to 17%, contributing to a collective market value loss of around $2 trillion on U.S. stock exchanges. While giants like Nvidia and energy companies reel, companies like Apple and Meta Platforms that can integrate AI at a lower cost have found new opportunities. This shift has significantly altered future projections related to AI infrastructure and energy consumption.
Billion-dollar fluctuations
Conversely, technology giants such as Apple and Meta have gained value due to lower capital expenditures and increased dividend expectations. The market has viewed the adoption of cheaper AI models as a positive development. In summary, DeepSeek’s innovative AI model has caused billions of dollars in market fluctuations within the energy and technology sectors. Despite being founded in 2023, DeepSeek’s impact by 2025 has been profound, particularly on hardware, software and energy companies.
The startup’s efficient AI model has reduced the need for high-cost infrastructure, causing significant market turbulence. Just as Microsoft‘s cloud credits have provided ChatGPT creator OpenAI with the necessary computing power and infrastructure to train large language models, the support from the High-Flyer hedge fund has played a similar role for DeepSeek.
Here are the effects felt across three different areas due to DeepSeek.
Impact on hardware companies:
• Nvidia and AMD: DeepSeek’s efficient AI model has raised the expectation that AI hardware demand might decline, resulting in a 17% drop in Nvidia’s shares and a total market loss of $1 trillion on the U.S. stock exchange.
• Chip manufacturers: The perception that AI workloads can operate with lower hardware requirements has caused fluctuations in the stock prices of major chip manufacturers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), Intel and Broadcom.
• Data center investments: Major technology companies such as Microsoft, Amazon and Google are reconsidering their data center expenditures, especially questioning the necessity of high-cost graphics processing unit-based infrastructure.
Impact on software companies:
• Power of open-source models: DeepSeek’s success has proven that open-source AI models can compete with proprietary commercial models, causing major AI companies like OpenAI, Anthropic and Google DeepMind to rethink their business models.
• Cloud computing services: More efficient AI models have necessitated new cost and pricing strategies for cloud providers, intensifying competition among Azure, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud’s AI services.
• Opportunities for companies like Apple and Meta: Investors have viewed companies like Apple and Meta positively, as they can integrate AI at lower costs rather than making large infrastructure investments.
Impact on energy companies:
• Shattered high energy demand expectations: Energy companies, particularly natural gas and electricity producers, anticipated major gains in the AI era due to large energy consumption. However, DeepSeek’s model has shown that this demand might be lower than expected.
• Devaluation of coal, natural gas and nuclear energy companies: As energy demand for AI decreases, there have been declines in the stock prices of energy companies.
• Uncertainty in green energy investments: There is uncertainty about how less energy-consuming AI systems will affect the demand for renewable energy.
OpenAI vs. DeepSeek: Similarities and differences
Microsoft’s support came through cloud infrastructure, Azure, enabling OpenAI to train its large models on Microsoft’s servers. High-Flyer’s support for DeepSeek, on the other hand, has primarily been through capital and stockpiles of GPUs.
DeepSeek’s supercomputers were built using GPUs accumulated over the years by the hedge fund. While Microsoft entered into a commercial partnership with OpenAI, integrating AI services into its products (Office 365, Azure AI, etc.), there has been no such direct commercial integration between High-Flyer and DeepSeek.
The hedge fund supported DeepSeek believing in long-term AI research, while Microsoft aims to recoup its investment by selling commercial AI products. It’s unclear what kind of return High-Flyer expects from DeepSeek, but quantitative finance and AI integration could be considered.
Microsoft’s cloud credits for OpenAI provided the computing power needed for AI model development, while High-Flyer’s financial and hardware support similarly helped establish a strong infrastructure for DeepSeek. However, Microsoft’s commercial goals are clearer, whereas High-Flyer’s economic benefits from DeepSeek remain uncertain.
Training and tech support: Empowering women entrepreneurs in quake-hit Hatay
Türk Telekom has utilized its technology and education expertise as part of the Türkiye leg of the global program jointly executed by the United Nations Women and Nokia, aimed at enhancing women’s tech access and developing their entrepreneurial skills.
Under the banner “Move for Entrepreneurship,” the program, held in Hatay, one of the southeastern provinces struck by the devastating February 2023 earthquakes, focused on offering training in financial literacy and digital marketing to women entrepreneurs affected by the disaster.
It sought to boost women’s entrepreneurial skills, integrate them more effectively into the business world, provide solutions tailored to local needs and support sustainable development goals.
Türk Telekom joined the global program, which is being conducted in eight different countries by Nokia and U.N. Women, to support women’s economic independence and entrepreneurship skills in Türkiye.
In Hatay, 27 women entrepreneurs from nine local women’s cooperatives participated in the training sessions. Volunteers from Nokia and Türk Telekom provided a total of 20 hours of training, covering practical and skill-building content in areas such as financial and digital literacy, cybersecurity, marketing, project management and supply chain management.
Supporting women entrepreneurs
Zeynep Özden, deputy general manager in charge of marketing and customer experience at TürkTelekom, said while pioneering the digital transformation of Türkiye, the company also takes it as its duty to support social development.
“Empowering women with technology is one of the keys to economic development. The digital world offers limitless opportunities for women entrepreneurs, and we strive to support their strong presence in the business world, using technology as a source of transformation and progress,” said Özden.
“With the ‘Move for Entrepreneurship’ program, we are contributing to increasing the entrepreneurial skills of women’s cooperatives affected by the earthquake in Hatay by providing technology and education support. As Turkish Telekom, we will continue to make technology accessible to everyone.”
Collaboration with women’s cooperatives
Erensoy Bilgin, country manager of Nokia for Türkiye, expressed pride in bringing the global partnership with U.N. Women, which started in 2022, to Türkiye for the first time in 2024 with the support of Türk Telekom.
“Within the scope of the ‘Move for Entrepreneurship’ program, we came together with women’s cooperatives in Hatay affected by the earthquake as U.N. Women, Türk Telekom and Nokia. We have taken a meaningful step to strengthen women’s economic independence and support their active participation in the business world. For this purpose, we carefully analyzed the needs in the field, created educational content, and worked meticulously to ensure that this information could be easily integrated into the participants’ ventures,” said Bilgin.
“As Nokia Türkiye, we will continue to contribute to sustainability and serve as a source of inspiration for women’s empowerment.”
Creating sustainable impact
Zeliha Ünaldı, deputy country director of U.N. Women Türkiye, emphasized the value of partnerships supporting the economic empowerment of women.
“As U.N. Women, we find every collaboration that supports the economic empowerment of women very valuable. This program has the potential to create a sustainable impact both individually and socially by touching the lives of women entrepreneurs affected by the earthquake. Programs like this, which help women overcome obstacles in their entrepreneurial journey, also play a critical role in achieving gender equality,” Ünaldı said.
“Within the scope of our program with Nokia, we hope that this training, conducted with the support of Türk Telekom, will increase women’s access to technology, support their entrepreneurial journeys, and thereby help the earthquake-affected region’s economic recovery. It is very precious for us to see our valued private sector partners invest in equality by participating in such programs. We believe this collaboration will inspire other companies as well.”
United Payment becomes majority shareholder of Turan
Turkish financial technology company United Payment has announced an agreement to acquire the majority shares of Turan, a leading financial application in the Turkic world, which it has been supporting through investments since 2022.
Known for its pioneering efforts both domestically and internationally, United Payment continues its strides toward regional leadership as it aims to create financial bridges between Turkic states through the services offered by Turan. Its takeover of the majority shares of Turan is pending approval from the Turkish competition watchdog.
Since its inception, United Payment has drawn attention with its strategic acquisitions, and it continues its operations with the vision of becoming the region’s largest company providing comprehensive fintech services.
Simplifying financial transactions
Turan, established to create money transfer corridors between Turkic states, offers instant money transfer services to Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
The application handles millions of Turkish liras in daily transfer volume, facilitates numerous financial transactions for residents in Türkiye while continuing to provide 100% digital and cost-effective financial services to all its users. Last year, Turan was ranked first in the finance category and second overall in the most downloaded applications in Türkiye.
The application provides accessible financial services to over 500,000 customers and has local offices in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.
Significant milestone
Özgür Bayraktar, the founder of Turan, said the company embarked on its journey in late October 2022 with “great dreams and sleepless nights fueled by our belief.”
“We left no stone unturned in the Turkic geography. We grew with each step, learned as we grew, and achieved remarkable feats. Today, we are proud to reach one of the most significant milestones in this journey,” said Bayraktar.
He noted that the agreement with United Payment, backed by Türkiye’s most established and powerful financial institutions, to sell the majority shares is a strong expression of Turan’s determination to “shape the future together.”
“I want to thank our team members who worked tirelessly day and night, all our investors who believed in us, and the United Payment team with whom we share common dreams. We will continue to work side by side and shoulder to shoulder with United Payment with the same passion and excitement,” Bayraktar added.
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