China’s DeepSeek Outperforms ChatGPT in Crypto Trading as OpenAI Eyes $1T IPO

Chinese-developed machine learning model DeepSeek has outperformed OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini in a recent crypto trading competition — showcasing the prowess of smaller, agile Chinese AI models that can defeat industry giants despite limited resources.

According to data from CoinGlass, DeepSeek outclassed all competitors by delivering a 9% trading gain, while OpenAI’s ChatGPT-5 landed in last place with a 66% loss. The results shocked analysts, given the vast disparity in resources and development budgets between the models.

Just for perspective, DeepSeek was developed at a total training cost of $5.3 million, while OpenAI spent $5.7 billion on research and development initiatives in the first half of 2025 alone.

The stark contrast underscores a growing belief that success in AI no longer depends solely on scale or funding — but on the precision and relevance of training data.

Crypto intelligence analyst Nicolai Søndergaard said the competition highlighted how crucial training methodology has become.

“If all the models were given the same prompts and strategies, the divergence in their results suggests that DeepSeek’s data was simply better tuned for live-market conditions.”

The outcome has reignited debate over whether Western tech giants are losing their early lead in AI innovation. DeepSeek’s success shows how Chinese developers — known for agile iteration and niche specialization — are gaining ground in practical AI applications, including automated trading, data interpretation, and real-time strategy execution.

OpenAI Eyes $1 Trillion IPO

Meanwhile, OpenAI is reportedly preparing for an initial public offering (IPO) valued at up to $1 trillion, which could include a $60 billion capital raise, according to Reuters.

The filing is expected to reach U.S. regulators in the second half of 2026, potentially making OpenAI the first startup in history to debut on public markets at a trillion-dollar valuation.

The move follows a $500 billion private share sale in October, when OpenAI employees sold $6.6 billion worth of stock to major institutional investors — a milestone that cemented its position as the world’s most valuable startup, surpassing SpaceX’s $400 billion valuation.

An OpenAI spokesperson told Reuters there is “no set date” for the IPO, emphasizing that the company remains focused on “building a durable business and advancing AGI for the benefit of everyone.” Still, the scale of the potential offering signals deepening institutional interest in AI — and in OpenAI’s leadership position within it.

What DeepSeek’s Win Really Means

The diverging trajectories of DeepSeek and OpenAI reveal two faces of today’s AI race — one powered by agility and optimization, the other by scale and ambition. DeepSeek’s low-cost victory shows that data quality and task-specific training can sometimes outperform even the most advanced large language models, especially in fast-moving sectors like crypto trading where milliseconds matter.

By contrast, OpenAI’s trillion-dollar aspirations represent a bet on infrastructure, scale, and ecosystem dominance — a long-term strategy that may ensure innovation at the expense of flexibility.

DeepSeek’s outperformance shouldn’t be seen as a fluke but as a wake-up call. Its lean training process and strong contextual awareness highlight how AI innovation is becoming decentralized — shifting from big-budget labs to smaller, faster, and more specialized ecosystems.

Meanwhile, OpenAI’s potential IPO underscores another milestone: the institutionalization of AI. DeepSeek proves that brilliance can come cheap, but OpenAI’s trillion-dollar target reflects how markets still reward scale and perceived stability, even as smaller challengers begin to bite at its heels.

In the end, the global AI race may no longer be about who has the most funding, but who can adapt the fastest. And in that race, DeepSeek has just proven that sometimes, efficiency beats extravagance.