Consumer Tech News (Jan 27-Jan 31): China's DeepSeek Launch Gets Mixed Reaction From Experts, Tech Biggies Reported Earnings & More

The White House said the National Security Council is reviewing the implications of DeepSeek, a Chinese AI firm. The review comes amid fears of intellectual property theft, a concern raised by David Sacks, the White House's AI and crypto czar.

Meta Platforms Inc. META CEO Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly considering purchasing a property in Washington DC as part of his strategy to work closely with President Donald Trump.

Earnings Results

Microsoft Corp. MSFT reported second-quarter GAAP earnings of $3.23 per share, beating the $3.11 consensus estimate. Quarterly revenue clocked in at $69.6 billion, beating the $68.78 billion analyst consensus estimate.

Read: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Accepts DeepSeek AI Has Some ‘Real Innovations’ — But Won’t Say If They Mark A Turning Point For AI Cost Reduction

International Business Machines Corporation IBM reported fourth-quarter earnings of $3.92 per share, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $3.75. Quarterly revenue came in at $17.55 billion, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $17.54 billion.

Meta reported fourth-quarter revenue of $48.39 billion, beating analyst estimates of $47.03 billion. The company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $8.02 per share, beating analyst estimates of $6.77 per share.

Related: Mark Zuckerberg Says China’s DeepSeek Did Some Novel Things ‘We’re Still Digesting,’ But Meta May Keep Pouring Billions Into AI Infrastructure Anyway

Intel Corporation INTC reported fourth-quarter earnings of 13 per share, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of 12 cents. Quarterly revenue clocked in at $14.3 billion, which beat the analyst consensus estimate of $13.81 billion.

Apple Inc. AAPL reported fiscal first-quarter revenue of $124.3 billion, beating analyst estimates of $124.13 billion. The iPhone maker reported first-quarter adjusted earnings of $2.40 per share, beating analyst estimates of $2.36 per share.

Related: Tim Cook Praises China’s DeepSeek For Driving Efficiency, Stresses Apple’s ‘Prudent And Deliberate’ Approach Toward Capital Expenditure

Artificial Intelligence

Nvidia Corporation NVDA stock took a hit as China’s DeepSeek unveiled an AI model that reportedly offers cutting-edge performance at a fraction of the cost. This development has sparked doubts about the need for massive GPU investments.

The race among large language models has intensified with DeepSeek R1 emerging as a formidable competitor to established players like OpenAI's o1 and Meta Platforms Inc.‘s Llama 3.2.

DeepSeek was targeted by significant cyberattacks, coinciding with its growing prominence in the AI sector.

Veteran investor Ross Gerber voiced his apprehensions regarding DeepSeek's privacy policy on X.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has addressed the capabilities of DeepSeek's R1 model, acknowledging its impressive performance and cost-effectiveness.

Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus and Anduril Industries, has voiced strong criticism against the reaction to DeepSeek, labeling it as an overreaction.

SoftBank Group SFBQF is reportedly negotiating a potential investment of $15 billion to $25 billion in OpenAI. This move could make SoftBank the largest investor in the ChatGPT creator, surpassing Microsoft, which has invested nearly $14 billion.

Technology & Telecom

Meta said it has agreed to a $25 million settlement with President Donald Trump over his suspension from Facebook and Instagram following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

As McKinsey highlights a significant shift in how artificial intelligence will be used in the future, Verizon Communications Inc. VZ launched AI Connect during its fourth quarter conference call, to meet the growing demand for network capacity and computational power.

Read: Satya Nadella Said ‘We Should Take Development Out Of China Very, Very Seriously.’ Now, DeepSeek’s R1 Has Emerged As A ChatGPT Killer, Outperforming OpenAI With 50x Lower Costs: Here’s More

Google Maps, owned by Alphabet Inc. GOOG, said that it will rename the "Gulf of Mexico" to "Gulf of America" for U.S. users. 

Google has reportedly reclassified the U.S. as a "sensitive country.", which is typically reserved for nations with strict governments or border disputes like China, Russia, and Iraq.

Social Media

Jeff Bezos-backed Perplexity AI has reportedly submitted a revised proposal to merge with TikTok’s U.S. business, offering the U.S. government a 50% stake in the new entity.

A group of U.S. investors, with backing from YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson, also known as MrBeast, has amassed over $20 billion to bid for TikTok.

Smartphones

Apple reportedly plans to release the iOS 18.4 update in April, following the public rollout of iOS 18.3 this week. Apple has released iOS 18.3, addressing 29 security vulnerabilities.

Apple joined forces with Elon Musk’s SpaceX and T-Mobile US Inc. to bring Starlink satellite texting capabilities to iPhones.

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