Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has released an updated version of its R1 reasoning model, named R1-0528, on the Hugging Face platform. This move, announced via a WeChat message, aims to enhance the model’s capabilities and accessibility for developers worldwide.
What’s New in R1-0528?
The updated R1 model boasts a massive 685 billion parameters, placing it among the largest publicly released AI models.Despite being labeled a “minor trial upgrade,” R1-0528 demonstrates significant improvements in code generation tasks, outperforming competitors like xAI’s Grok 3 mini and Alibaba’s Qwen 3, while closely trailing OpenAI’s o4 mini and o3 models on the LiveCodeBench leaderboard.
Released under the permissive MIT license, R1-0528 allows for commercial use, modification, and integration into various applications. However, due to its size, running the model requires substantial computational resources, making it less accessible for those without high-end hardware or distributed computing setups.
Implications for the Global AI Landscape
DeepSeek’s rapid advancements, achieved with relatively modest resources, challenge the notion that massive investments are necessary to compete in the AI arena. The company’s success underscores China’s growing capabilities in AI development, despite export controls and limited access to cutting-edge hardware.
The release of R1-0528 also intensifies the competition among AI developers, prompting industry leaders to reassess their strategies and investments. As DeepSeek continues to innovate, the global AI race is poised to accelerate, with implications for technology, economics, and geopolitics.
For developers and researchers interested in exploring R1-0528, the model is available on Hugging Face: DeepSeek-R1-0528.
