Deep in thought

The furore over the emergence of DeepSeek, the Chinese AI app that blew up the tech market this week, got me thinking. And the thought I couldn’t escape from was ‘haven’t we been here before?’ In the tech world, any change seems to lead to statements of absolute certainty about the permanence of that change which in fact lasts only until the next change. The money follows as investors pile into what is lauded as a sure thing. Well, $1 trillion of losses as AI firms’ shares tumbled may prompt a rethink. But don’t bet on it.

DeepSeek is here and China may have a rival for ChatGPT

DeepSeek kicked over the tables because its model was far more cost effective than its competitors, requiring far fewer advanced chips than many insisted were needed and deploying far simpler engineering principles. It also knocked a bullish new US president out of the headlines. The fact that China, the recipient of much of US President Trump’s bullish rhetoric, had dealt a blow to the AI sector’s US giants has a significance that won’t be lost in either country.

The world this week is a very different place to last week, but think too before entering into yet more speculation about how AI threatens to outsmart humanity. Sure, there are threats, but ask DeepSeek about Taiwan or tank man in Tiananmen Square and it soon becomes clear that humans are still setting the agenda. There’s plenty still for investors and regulators to get to grips with, but the sooner we embrace the fact that the only certainty is uncertainty the better.

Danske Bank fined NKr 50m for market manipulation

Away from the tensions between China and America, we feature strong coverage of developments in the Nordic nations. This week the $4m fine on Danske Bank for market manipulation caught the eye, as much for the robust culture it revealed as for the misdemeanor itself. As we’ve been saying for some time, one invariably leads to the other.

Why tech, process and people are top of mind for CISO Laurence Lafond

We took time to sit down with CISO Laurence Lafond for a fascinating in-depth discussion on the current cybersecurity landscape, risk assessment and aligning security with agile business practice. It’s an essential read for legal and compliance professionals.

There’s a great line in this week’s podcast, delivered by Dan Nikci, who works with the alternative investment community. He describes Domino’s Pizza not as a food retailer but as “a technology platform that delivers pizza.” It’s a reminder that technology is changing the way we need to look at business, and to assess the challenges that come with running a successful one.

Until next week,

Martin Cloake,

Managing Editor

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