A DeepSeek Moment
China’s DeepSeek stunned the world when it released its large language model to rival those of industry giants like OpenAI and Google. Open-source, and built at a fraction of the cost and computing power. 67 years after the “Sputnik moment”, when the launch of the first Soviet satellite in 1957 sent shockwaves through US strategic circles and led to the creation of NASA, many in Silicon Valley wondered if we were now facing a “DeepSeek moment”.
DeepSeek has since drawn some skepticism about the actual cost of training, and much criticism about the ‘openness’ or accessibility of its training data and pre-training algorithm.
The real disruption, however, may have been in the tech sector’s economic model. DeepSeek’s open-source distribution opens up opportunities for less well-funded companies, forces industry leaders to reduce cost and improve efficiency, and paves the way for low-cost services to be brought to the masses. The open-source license then, may be on the verge of upending an entire economic model.
In lockstep, after the initial panic and sharp decline in stock prices of most major tech giants, the sector began to communicate that open-source projects will actually provide a net boost to these companies by accelerating AI adoption. Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, happily wrote on social media: "Jevon’s paradox strikes again!", referring to the phenomenon where increased efficiency in using a resource leads to a net increase in its overall consumption, rather than a decrease.
Our DeepSeek moment then may not be about the race for AI leadership between two rivaling superpowers, but about open-source development becoming the primary engine of innovation.
The Future is Open Source
Open Source software can be freely used, modified, and shared, emphasizing transparency, community involvement, and the freedom to innovate without restrictions. It fosters a culture of trust and accountability. When software is open, it can be audited by anyone, reducing the risk of hidden vulnerabilities or unethical practices, especially important in AI where concerns about bias, privacy, and misuse are paramount.
Open source also drives innovation by expanding the pool of programmers who can examine, critique, and modify existing code, and it seems likely that this collaborative model will continue to gain traction, given its now proven track record.
And it’s no surprise that the case for open source as the future of software has been supported by some of the most influential voices in the industry.
Mark Zuckerberg, for instance, has emphasized that open source is not just about sharing code but about creating a more secure, efficient, and collaborative ecosystem. In a Meta earnings call in February 2024, he said:
There are several strategic benefits. First, open source software is typically safer and more secure….due to all the ongoing scrutiny, and development from the community. Second, open source software often becomes an industry standard…[when it does, it] becomes easier to integrate new innovations into our products….third, open source is hugely popular with developers. We know that people want to work on open systems that will be widely adopted, so this helps us recruit the best people.
Jim Fan, a senior research scientist at Nvidia, also noted,
Open source AI represents the world’s best shot at harnessing this technology to create the greatest economic opportunity and security for everyone.
Linus Torvalds, creator of Linux, boldly predicted “the future is open source everything”.
To sum up, open source has some key strategic benefits:
Unmatched Innovation and Collaboration: Open source enables global communities of developers to build on each other’s work. This collaborative model leads to faster iteration and more robust software. In fact, as per OpenLogic’s April 2025 State of Open Source Report, 96% of organizations have increased or maintained their use of open-source software in the past year, indicating that nearly everyone is tapping into community-driven innovation.
Cost Efficiency and Freedom from Lock-In: It’s no coincidence that a majority of businesses adopt open source to save money and avoid vendor lock-in. Open platforms mean you’re not handcuffed to a single vendor’s ecosystem. You can run the software wherever you want and modify it to fit your needs – a huge advantage for flexibility. Many firms also choose open tech to ensure interoperability and open standards as it puts control back in the users’ hands.
Security and Quality: With code being transparent, issues are spotted and fixed faster. Various security experts have noted that transparent, auditable code is inherently more secure. The collaborative peer review in open source means quality tends to be high and trust is easier to establish. It’s telling that Linux is now the backbone of most cloud computing and mobile devices worldwide, a position earned because it became more advanced, secure, and versatile than its closed-source counterparts.
Global Talent and Community Support: Open source attracts the best talent because developers love the freedom to tinker, learn, and contribute. The community culture means extensive documentation, forums, and shared best practices. No proprietary vendor, however large, can match the collective support of a passionate global community. This community-driven model also future-proofs software – even if one company moves on, the project can live on.
We at dotCMS have always believed in these principles – our platform was built from the ground up on open-source tech, and we’ve seen first-hand how it empowers our developer community.
Read more: BSL in Action: Who’s Doing It and Does It Work?
Why The Resistance
If open source is so great, why do some of the biggest tech companies still keep their crown jewels closed-source? The reality is, there are some strong drivers for proprietary models, and it’s worth acknowledging those.
Competitive Advantage and ROI: Companies like Microsoft built empires on proprietary software, and they’re understandably protective of products that generate billions in revenue. Keeping source code closed can maintain a competitive moat – no one else can legally replicate the software, which helps maximize returns on R&D investments. For example, OpenAI, despite its name, transitioned from a non-profit research lab releasing papers and code to a for-profit that keeps its latest models proprietary. This was driven by the need to raise billions in funding to build a sustainable business. As OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman explained in an interview to Business Insider, that by controlling access OpenAI can better prevent misuse and ensure a consistent quality of service – important factors for a technology as potentially dangerous as advanced AI.
Brand Integrity and User Experience: Some companies fear that if anyone can modify and distribute their code, it could lead to inconsistent user experiences or even tarnish the brand if modifications go awry. By keeping tight control, these firms ensure customers get the “intended” experience and support. This is less of an issue for backend infrastructure or developer tools, but for polished end-user applications it’s an important consideration.
Safety and Liability: In fields like AI, there’s a hotly debated argument that releasing powerful models openly could be irresponsible without safeguards. Proprietary AI providers often cite safety, compliance, or ethical liability as reasons to restrict access. If the model is open, anyone might use it to generate harmful content, and the originating company might still get the blame. Closed models allow for usage policies, monitoring, and kill-switches if needed.
Monetization of Cloud Services: In the cloud era, one reason some companies keep code closed is to prevent others from offering it as a service. If you open-source your code, a big cloud provider might deploy it and siphon off your potential customers. This exact scenario has played out – Amazon famously offered hosted versions of open-source databases and search engines (like Elasticsearch, MongoDB, etc.), causing those open-source companies to lose business. The fear of “strip-mining” by cloud giants makes some startups say, “okay, we’ll show you the code for transparency, but you can’t just run it as a service without coming to us.” (which leads us to the BSL license)
All these factors mean closed source isn’t going away overnight. Giants like Microsoft, Apple, and Oracle will likely keep plenty of code proprietary. And indeed, proprietary models can produce great tech – it’s not an ideological absolute. But the tide is clearly turning toward more openness. Even traditionally closed players are open-sourcing key parts of their stack (Microsoft now open-sources many developer tools and frameworks, for instance). And when it comes to emerging technologies like AI, the momentum is on the side of open models – thanks in part to our DeepSeek moment.