The DeepSeek Thesis - by Irene Zhang - ChinaTalk

Theory Briefing

• Leaked minutes from a four-hour meeting with DeepSeek's founder Liang are the rare primary source fueling debate about his true theory of action.
• China-AI watchers have struggled since the start to reconcile DeepSeek's moves with any single coherent strategic logic.
• The article frames DeepSeek's rise as a test case for whether open research ambitions and Chinese state priorities can coexist in one lab.
• Liang's stated reasoning, as captured in the leaked notes, sits at the center of competing interpretations about who DeepSeek is really building for.