DeepSeek vs. OpenAI's OSS: A Tale of Two Open-Source Models

Two major players recently dropped new open-source models, but they represent two fundamentally different philosophies. OpenAI, the established leader, returned to the open-source scene with fanfare and its gpt-oss-20b model. Shortly after, the Chinese startup DeepSeek quietly released v3.1. While one was a media event, the other was a single tweet. The initial results from hands-on testing are starkly one-sided. Out-of-the-Box Performance: A Clear Winner When you evaluate a model as a tool to be used right now, the comparison is not even close. Across multiple practical tests, DeepSeek v3.1 consistently delivered superior results: ...

27 August, 2025 · 4 min · 654 words · Yury Akinin

OpenAI's Hand Was Forced: Why the AI Race is No Longer Won in Secret

For years, the AI frontier was defined by closed doors and proprietary models. That era is officially over. OpenAI’s recent pivot to open-source isn’t just a strategic shift; it’s a direct response to a new reality: the center of AI innovation has gone public, and China is leading the charge. The Open-Source Tipping Point The catalyst was the surprise release of high-performance models by Chinese startup DeepSeek. As a recent Fortune article aptly pointed out, this move exposed a critical vulnerability in the “closed-garden” strategy of Western AI labs. By making powerful AI openly accessible, DeepSeek didn’t just win goodwill; it ignited an explosion of development across China. Companies from Baidu to Alibaba quickly followed suit, creating a tidal wave of open innovation. ...

13 August, 2025 · 3 min · 447 words · Yury Akinin