Weekly Download #71: Deepseek Deepsinks Nvidia

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WEEKLY DOWNLOAD #71

Good Evening , it’s Sunday, Feb 2, 2025, and the damn Groundhog saw his stupid shadow, so if you are cursed enough to live in the parts of America that experience “Winter,” you’d better buckle up because that overgrown marmot must own stock in puffy jackets.

Go to Hell, Phil - if that’s even your real name.

Here’s what’s on deck for this week:

🏃 THE RUNDOWN AI [sponsor] – One of the best AI-centric newsletters out there.
🔎 DEEPSEEK FAQ: What is Deepseek and why did it make Nvidia crash?
⏩ FAST FIVE: Five stories you might have missed.
❌ ELON EXTRA: Three news stories about Elon Musk with no commentary.
📱 GEAR OF THE WEEK: Samsung S25 series (with exclusive deals!)
🌸 MORONS OF THE WEEK: Stench tourism.
💸 DEALS: Discounts on tech you need.
🛠️ TOOLS: Apps we love.

Let’s get into it, folks.
-Roger

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_{DEEPSEEK FAQ}
What is Deepseek and why did it make Nvidia crash?

Last week, I mentioned that American refusal to work with Chinese companies was making Chinese AI stronger.

Then Chinese tech company Deepseek dropped a dirty bomb on everything OpenAI has been building. This FAQ is for anyone who hasn’t been keeping up.

What is a large language model (LLM)?
Companies like OpenAI and Deepseek work on Machine Learning (AI) models that train themselves on huge datasets. These are called LLMs (Large Language Models).

Why is Deepseek such bad news for OpenAI?
 Deepseek built their models from the ground up while asking, “What if we didn’t have to flare a month’s worth of natural gas to activate a single agent?” As a result, Deepseek’s model is far more efficient than OpenAI’s.

Did Deepseek rip off OpenAI?
OpenAI claims that Deepseek’s models were based on existing OpenAI data. Alas, that’s what being “open source” means.

Q4: Why did this make Nvidia’s stock drop?
 Nvidia’s stock had been propped up by insider trading and the idea that if Sam Altman actually achieved AGI (Artificial General Intelligence), then OpenAI would need to build data centers, fast. Deepseek’s model disproved the need for that scale.

Q5: What does this mean for OpenAI?
 Altman is trying to downplay it, but has been spotted on Reddit saying that OpenAI will not have as big of a lead in the AI race due to this development. Clearly they’re scrambling.

_{FAST FIVE}
Five stories you might’ve missed

1.) UK becomes first nation to ban AI that makes child pornography
KnowTechie’s Take: Seems like a no-brainer, but unfortunately so many American tech titans lack a brain.

2.) MLCommons and Hugging Face release dataset of human voices
KnowTechie’s Take: 1M hours of audio that no one will ever hear? What is this, my college radio show?

3.) Meta settles with Donald Trump over removing his accounts after January 6th
KnowTechie’s Take: Leopards gotta eat Zuck’s face eventually, right?

4.) Apple teases iOS 18.4 features
KnowTechie’s Take: Hopefully they fixed that thing where Apple Intelligence was making Siri worse.

5.) Microsoft says XBox games will be available for the Nintendo Switch 2
KnowTechie’s Take: Nintendo, if you want to send me a Switch 2 to review, I swear I’ll give it 10/10.

^{PARTNER MESSAGE}

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_{ELON EXTRA}
Three stories about Elon Musk with no commentary

1.) Elon Musk has access to U.S. Treasury systems.

 2.) Elon Musk sues more companies over X “boycott.”

3.) Elon Musk plans to eliminate the penny.

_{GEAR OF THE WEEK}
Samsung Galaxy S25

ICYMI, Kevin went to the Samsung Galaxy event and got some one-on-one time with Samsung’s flagship phone, the Galaxy S25 series. Frankly, he has not been able to stop talking about it.

Only time will tell if the Samsung S25 series can finally dethrone the Apple iPhone, but the side-by-side looks good for the Korean megacorp.

We’re excited to see how Android stans react to the S25 series – available to the public later this week.

Upgrading? Don’t forget to check out our rundown of the best deals on the Samsung Galaxy S25.

_{BECAUSE SOMETIMES, LESS FORMATTING IS MORE...}
📋 How To Paste Text In Plain Text

Hey folks, Kevin here with a quick how-to.

Every few weeks or so, I have to remind Roger how to paste in plain text, even though he swears he’s been doing it “since the 90s.”

What is plain text?
Plain text pasting means copying and pasting just the basic characters without any formatting like bold, colors, or special fonts.

Why it matters:
Plain text pasting matters because it prevents formatting conflicts and unwanted styling from causing problems when moving text between different programs or websites.

How To Paste Text In Plain Text: A Super Simple Solution

1. Windows Users:

   • Press Ctrl + Shift + V
     or

   • Right-click → "Paste as Plain Text"

2. Mac Users:

   • Press Command + Shift + V
     or

   • Right-click → "Paste and Match Style"

-Kevin

_{MORONS OF THE WEEK}
Stench tourism.

Far be it from me to criticize people for what makes them happy, but I’ve gotta call this one out. Why do so many people want to smell a flower that stinks like a rotting corpse?

That’s right, it’s corpse flower season again. For the uninitiated, the Amorphophallus titanum is a big weird flower that smells like rotting corpses. It only blooms once every few years, drawing disgusting weirdos from around the world.

Sickos can head to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden right now to get a whiff.

DEALS

Folks, Super Bowl Sunday is next week, which means the best time to score the best deal on a new TV.

Proof in point: Best Buy’s nuclear deals on some best-selling TVs.

• Samsung Frame TV: Save up to $1300 + Save $50 on Music Frame with a purchase of any Frame TV.

• Samsung Neo QLED 4K TV: Save up to $2700

• Samsung Freestyle: Save $200

• See More TV Deals here

Free stuff

• ExpressVPN - Free Trial VPN [link]

• Clean Email - Try for Free [link]

• Skillshare - Get a week, free [link]

• 1Password - Try for free [link]

• Dashlane - Try for free [link]

• Paramount+ - Free Trial - Stream the New Season of School Spirits [link]

🔥 Last Call: Galaxy S25 Pre-Order Savings End Soon! 🔥

Don't miss out on your final chance to secure the Galaxy S25 series with exclusive savings!

ICYMI: Samsung is hooking KnowTechie readers with an exclusive $50 discount. That’s on top of all the other savings they’re shoving in your pockets.

• Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra 1TB

• Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus 512GB

• Samsung Galaxy S25 256GB

Limited-time offer • Guaranteed early delivery • Exclusive savings you can't get elsewhere

See at Samsung – Unlock Savings Here

TOOLS

OpenAI o3-mini: See the inspiration for Deepseek in action!

Shimmer 2.0: ADHD coaching, powered by AI.

ChatGPT Operator: Browser-based AI-agents.

THANKS FOR READING!

Have a good one!
-Roger

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