A software developer has acquired the domain “OGOpenAI.com” and redirected it to DeepSeek, a prominent Chinese AI lab gaining attention for its contributions to the open-source AI community.
Developer Ananay Arora revealed that he purchased the domain for a price “cheaper than a Chipotle meal” and intends to sell it at a profit in the future.
This gesture appears to highlight how DeepSeek is following in the footsteps of OpenAI’s early practices by releasing advanced AI models freely to the public. DeepSeek’s offerings, which can be run offline and are free to use with adequate hardware, resemble OpenAI’s earlier open-source models like Point-E and Jukebox.
Last week, DeepSeek drew widespread interest from AI enthusiasts after unveiling an open version of its DeepSeek-R1 model. According to the company, this model outperforms OpenAI’s o1 on select benchmarks. OpenAI has shifted away from releasing open-format versions of its flagship AI models, with exceptions like Whisper, sparking debate among industry professionals. This pivot has even been cited in a lawsuit by Elon Musk, who alleges that OpenAI has strayed from its original nonprofit goals.
Arora explained his inspiration for the domain redirect came from a since-deleted X post by Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas, who likened DeepSeek’s openness to OpenAI’s earlier days. “I thought it would be fun to have [the] domain point to DeepSeek,”
DeepSeek is part of a growing list of Chinese AI labs, including Alibaba’s Qwen, that are providing open alternatives to models from companies like OpenAI.
Despite efforts by the U.S. government to limit China’s advancements in AI, including restrictions on chip exports, the rapid progress of AI labs like DeepSeek suggests that further measures might be needed.
