DeepSeek founder Lian Wenfeng is being hailed as a hero within the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, the place he grew up and reportedly returned for the Lunar New Year, joined by bodyguards.
Wenfeng—who, at 40, is already a billionaire on account of his hedge fund, High-Flyer—is seemingly much more beloved by locals following DeepSeek’s breakthrough analysis, which demonstrated that sturdy AI fashions could possibly be constructed with fewer and less-powerful Nvidia chips. The discovering has important implications, notably in China, the place entry to the highest-end chips has been restricted.
Residents of his native group inform the Financial Times that Wenfeng was a “top student” who cherished comedian books, was a math whiz, and got here from a household of educators. According to at least one native, Wenfeng additionally performed some soccer. “We all grew up in this village,” the resident tells the FT. “We’re very proud of him.”
Despite his rising star, Wenfeng has largely prevented public consideration, irritating these desirous to be taught extra about him. Given the destiny of high-flying Chinese CEOs like Jack Ma and Pony Ma — who confronted authorities scrutiny after gaining slightly an excessive amount of visibility — don’t be stunned if Wenfeng chooses to remain within the background.
