DeepSeek R1 and its capabilities

From: gregisenberg

DeepSeek R1 is a new reasoning model that has gained significant attention due to its advanced capabilities and open-source availability [00:00:22]. Developed in China, this model is reportedly on par with some of ChatGPT’s reasoning models [00:00:56]. Its popularity stems from its ability to “think and reason,” which can lead to “superhuman capabilities” [00:00:30] [00:00:32] [00:00:35], and the fact that it is free to use on their website [00:01:04] [00:01:06].

Core Capabilities of DeepSeek R1

DeepSeek R1 and similar reasoning models excel at processing information and generating detailed, thoughtful outputs [00:05:00] [00:15:14].

• Advanced Reasoning: These models spend extra time and pay attention to detailed instructions, meticulously processing every detail to ensure tasks are completed as requested [00:15:14] [00:15:17] [00:15:19]. This contrasts with other models that might offer a “thought starter” but require significant human intervention [00:13:50] [00:14:02] [00:14:05].
• Transcript Analysis & Content Generation: DeepSeek R1 can analyze large transcripts, understand the content, and generate comprehensive outputs like blog posts. For example, it can extract calculations, geopolitical implications, and future predictions from a live stream transcript and even create graphs [00:12:21] [00:12:43]. The generated content often appears “pretty human level incredible,” akin to work from a senior writer or research engineer [00:14:24] [00:14:26] [00:14:29].
• Configurable Instructions: The model’s instructions can be highly configured to produce specific output types, such as graphs or SEO enhancements [00:14:42] [00:14:45] [00:14:50] [00:14:55] [00:15:00].
• Information Verification (with Web Search): When enabled, DeepSeek can use web search to verify claims within an article, searching the internet to cross-reference information [00:20:22] [00:20:27] [00:21:28].
• Potential for Omni-Model Capabilities: While not specific to DeepSeek R1, the discussion highlights the potential for future models, like OpenAI’s 4o, to understand audio, tone, cadence, and even breathing rates, which could have significant implications for tasks like negotiation [00:46:27] [00:46:34] [00:46:42].

Accessibility and Cost Considerations

DeepSeek R1 can be accessed in several ways, each with its own implications:

DeepSeek.com (Direct Website/App)

• Free to Use: The model is free to use on the DeepSeek.com website [00:01:06].
• Hosting Location: The website and app are currently hosted in China [00:02:28] [00:02:30].
• Data Privacy Concerns: When sending data to another country, it is subject to their rules, laws, and regulations. Users are advised to be very careful about putting sensitive data into this system, as it would not belong to a region where the user might have control [00:02:48] [00:02:50] [00:02:52] [00:02:55]. This warning is repeated multiple times [00:05:19] [00:21:57] [00:47:50].
• Server Busyness: The DeepSeek website can frequently be busy due to its popularity, leading to timeouts [00:07:36] [00:21:47].

API Providers

For users who want to avoid sending data to China or prefer more reliable access, DeepSeek R1 can be accessed via API providers:

• Fireworks AI: Hosts the DeepSeek model [00:08:50] [00:08:53]. It’s hosted in the United States, addressing data sovereignty concerns [00:05:57] [00:06:01] [00:10:14]. Pricing is approximately $8 per million tokens [00:16:49].
• Groq: Offers a “distilled llama 70b” model, which is a smaller, incredibly fast version of the model [00:11:06] [00:11:13] [00:11:14].
• OpenRouter: Another API provider that offers access to pretty much every model, including DeepSeek R1 [00:38:57] [00:40:08]. They may offer free credits [00:39:06].

Running Locally

For maximum control and privacy, DeepSeek R1 can be run locally on a user’s machine:

• Open Web UI: The recommended interface for running models locally [00:22:54]. It provides a user-friendly chat interface similar to ChatGPT [00:31:31].
• Docker: Required to set up Open Web UI. Docker contains the entire app, simplifying installation to just two terminal commands (pulling and running the container) [00:23:03] [00:24:04] [00:33:37]. Users with NVIDIA GPUs can use a specific command to leverage their GPU for efficiency [00:24:14] [00:24:21].
• Ollama: A tool for downloading and running local AI models [00:25:15] [00:25:19]. Once installed, models like DeepSeek R1 can be pulled directly into Ollama and then accessed via Open Web UI [00:26:37] [00:32:07] [00:33:40].
• Mobile Devices (Apollo App): It’s possible to run local models on mobile devices using apps like Apollo. This app allows users to download models (which can be several gigabytes) directly to their phone, enabling local inference even without an internet connection [00:37:04] [00:37:27] [00:42:09] [00:43:40]. This is particularly efficient on Apple hardware due to Apple’s MLX infrastructure [00:42:00] [00:44:50].

Model Performance and Customization

• Parameter Count and Performance: Larger parameter models (e.g., 600 billion parameters) tend to be more intelligent and produce more detailed results, though they may take longer to process [00:07:01] [00:07:06]. Distilled versions of models are smaller, run faster, and can be efficient, but may not think as long or provide as detailed results [00:07:17] [00:07:23] [00:12:02].
• Temperature Setting: This control influences the model’s creativity:
  • Lower Temperature (e.g., 0): Makes the model less prone to “hallucinations” and more likely to follow instructions logically, useful for code or precise tasks [00:29:45] [00:29:50] [00:30:26]. This is likened to “coffee mode” [00:30:54] [00:30:57].
  • Higher Temperature (e.g., 1): Encourages extreme creativity, useful for creative writing or non-logical reasoning where “out of the box” thinking is desired [00:30:01] [00:30:04] [00:30:10]. This is likened to “wine mode” [00:30:46] [00:30:49].
• Prompt Engineering: Users can optimize prompts for efficiency and desired outputs by defining instructions, expected outputs, and what is not wanted [00:32:19] [00:19:32] [00:19:38]. The OpenAI playground can help reconfigure simple prompts into more detailed, efficient “chaining prompts” [00:18:45] [00:19:14] [00:19:16] [00:19:22].

Implications and Future Outlook

The rise of powerful reasoning models like DeepSeek R1 signals a new era in AI where having an “unfair advantage” through efficient AI use is critical for businesses and startups [00:13:05] [00:13:08].

• AI Arms Race: The demand for powerful models like DeepSeek R1 is creating an “AI arms race,” leading to increased demand for GPUs and hosting services [00:15:53] [00:16:11] [00:16:12].
• Cost Reduction: As models become more efficient over time, their prices are expected to drop significantly [00:18:03] [00:18:08].
• Ubiquitous AI: The ability to run sophisticated models locally on devices like phones and potentially even watches suggests a future where powerful AI capabilities are always available, even offline [00:22:21] [00:43:47] [00:43:52]. This opens up numerous startup ideas and applications, such as transcription for live streams [00:37:37], emergency response systems, or real-time translation and negotiation assistance [00:44:00] [00:44:02] [00:45:30] [00:45:51].
• Picking the Right Tool: It’s important to understand that not every task requires the most powerful model. Users should choose models based on their specific use case, balancing depth of reasoning with speed and efficiency [00:42:24] [00:42:25] [00:42:45]. This aligns with the idea of choosing the right AI tool based on technical proficiency.

The development of models like DeepSeek R1 highlights the rapid advancement in AI, encouraging individuals to explore and experiment with these tools [00:48:49] [00:50:50].