'pride Of His Hometown': Who Is Deepseek Founder Liang Wenfeng? What To Know About The 40-year Old Billionaire

When 40-year-old Liang Wenfeng, laminitis of nan tech world's latest AI star, DeepSeek, returned to his location colony successful nan confederate Chinese authorities of Guangdong for Lunar New Year's Eve celebrations past week, he was fixed a hero's welcome.

The colony honored him pinch a reddish banner that said, "Warm congratulations for becoming nan pridefulness of his hometown," according to a translated type of nan banner.

Wenfeng's fame is partially owed to his AI startup, DeepSeek, which rattled U.S. tech stocks erstwhile it skyrocketed to nan apical of app stores past play (it's still topping iPhone charts) aft claiming that its latest AI exemplary matched aliases surpassed AI from manufacture leaders for illustration OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google—but astatine a fraction of nan cost.

While AI from startups for illustration Anthropic tin costs $100 cardinal to develop, DeepSeek claims its AI costs small than $6 cardinal for nan aforesaid functionality.

Related: DeepSeek AI Cost Less Than $6 Million to Develop. Here's Why Meta and Microsoft Are Justifying Spending Billions.

Liang Wenfeng. Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images

Wenfeng was already celebrated successful Guangdong earlier DeepSeek. He became a billionaire aft establishing nan hedge money High-Flyer successful 2015, which exceeded 100 cardinal yuan (close to $14 billion) successful assets nether guidance by 2021. He is now worthy astatine slightest $1 billion, according to Forbes.

Residents of his hometown told nan Financial Times that arsenic a kid he was a "top student" who publication comic books and excelled successful math.

"We each grew up successful this village," 1 resident told nan publication. "We're very proud of him."

Who is Liang Wenfeng?

Wenfeng was calved successful 1985 and was a straight-A student successful school, per nan Wall Street Journal.

Before founding DeepSeek, Wenfeng pursued an acquisition successful engineering. According to The New York Times, he has a method inheritance successful AI engineering and wrote his 2010 thesis connected improving AI surveillance systems astatine Zhejiang University, a nationalist assemblage successful Hangzhou, China. He graduated from Zhejiang pinch a master's people successful accusation and relationship engineering.

Related: OpenAI Says AI Industry Disruptor DeepSeek May Have Copied Its Work arsenic Rivals Race to Catch Up

Wenfeng founded nan hedge money High-Flyer successful June 2015 astatine nan spot of 30, per nan Chinese publication QQ.com. He and his squad were wished to usage mathematics and AI to coming beardown results for clients.

High-Flyer knowledgeable regulatory pressures from 2019 to 2023, starring nan squad to attraction overmuch connected AI arsenic a broadside task and build computing systems pinch Nvidia graphics cards. Wenfeng officially founded DeepSeek successful July 2023. The AI institution became overmuch of a attraction for him aft High-Flyer had to unopen down its superior finance merchandise successful February 2024, per The Times.

In a 2023 question and reply pinch Chinese tech publication 36KR, Wenfeng said that DeepSeek's extremity was wide artificial intelligence, aliases AI that surpasses value cognitive abilities. He too said that AI startups were well-positioned to compete pinch established companies.

"The marketplace is changing," Wenfeng told nan publication according to an English-translated type of his remarks, which were primitively made successful Chinese. "The existent decisive portion is often not immoderate ready-made rules and conditions, but nan expertise to accommodate and group to changes."

Related: Is DeepSeek nan Worst Nightmare for VCs? Venture Investors Are Rattled, But Some See a Silver Lining