DeepSeek founder Lian Wenfeng is being hailed as a hero within the southern Chinese language province of Guangdong, the place he grew up and reportedly returned for the Lunar New Yr, joined via bodyguards.
Wenfeng—who, at 40, is already a billionaire because of his hedge fund, Top-Flyer—is it seems that much more liked via locals following DeepSeek’s leap forward analysis, which demonstrated that robust AI fashions might be constructed with fewer Nvidia chips. The discovering has vital implications, specifically in China, the place get admission to to the highest-end chips has been limited.
Citizens inform the Monetary Instances that Wenfeng was once a “most sensible scholar” who liked comedian books, was once a math whiz, and got here from a circle of relatives of educators. In keeping with one native, Wenfeng additionally performed some soccer. “All of us grew up on this village,” the resident tells the FT. “We’re very happy with him.”
In spite of his emerging big name, Wenfeng has in large part have shyed away from public consideration, irritating the ones keen to be told extra about him. Given the destiny of high-flying Chinese language CEOs like Jack Ma and Pony Ma — who confronted govt scrutiny after gaining a bit an excessive amount of visibility — don’t be stunned if Wenfeng chooses to stick within the background.