If accurate, DeepSeek's profitability despite deep discounts would signal a sustainable low-cost AI model, potentially pressuring rivals to cut prices.

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has claimed its V3 and R1 models achieve a theoretical daily cost-profit ratio of 545%, highlighting cost implications for enterprises adopting similar models from other cloud providers.

In a GitHub post published over the weekend, DeepSeek estimated its daily inference cost for V3 and R1 models at $87,072, assuming a $2 per hour rental for Nvidia's H800 chips.

Theoretical daily revenue was pegged at $562,027, implying a 545% cost-profit ratio and over $200 million in potential annual revenue.