DeepSeek's Deep Pockets: $12B and a Huawei-Powered Future

DeepSeek on the verge of raising $12B, valuation hits $75B Reflection AI's Beam aims to close Western gap with China's open models Google locks Gemini Pro behind $19.99 subscription A Eye on AI - 12:30 PM DeepSeek raises a massive funding round that could hit $15 billion, setting up a 2027 IPO and a giant Huawei-powered data center in Inner Mongolia. Reflection AI's new open-weight Beam model, backed by Nvidia and the Trump administration, challenges China's GLM-5.2. Google restructures Gemini on October 9th, putting Pro and Deep Think behind pricier tiers. The one-day barrage of model releases from Xiaomi, Anthropic, and OpenAI highlights the frantic pace of AI development. Plus, Pinterest's Beauty Guides use AI to turn saved inspiration into salon-ready plans with costs and maintenance tips. A look at the US-China AI race, funding battles, and consumer impacts. Sources: - koreajoongangdaily.com: https://www.koreajoongangdaily.com/opinion/in-the-ai-era-humanities-will-determine-the-victor/12907558 - timesofindia.indiatimes.com: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/ai-models-are-misbehaving-but-america-still-wont-slow-down-china-is-a-big-reason-why/articleshow/134743061.cms - ground.news: https://ground.news/article/scoop-a-powerful-new-model-from-startup-reflection-is-set-to-shake-up-the-ai-race - justsecurity.org: https://www.justsecurity.org/159607/fear-of-chinas-ai-is-the-new-missile-gap/ - qz.com: https://qz.com/deepseek-funding-round-tencent-catl-ipo-100626 - binance.com: https://www.binance.com/en/square/post/374265739836964 - cnbc.com: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2026/10/06/reflection-ceo-misha-laskin-on-launch-of-new-ai-model-beam-open-weight-vs-closed-model-debate.html - binance.com: https://www.binance.com/en/square/post/374334438672098 - c-span.org: https://www.c-span.org/program/public-affairs-event/former-us-natl-security-adviser-jake-sullivan-discusses-the-us-china-ai-race/686102 - news.ssbcrack.com: https://news.ssbcrack.com/deepseek-funding-round-swells-past-80-billion-yuan-ahead-of-2027-ipo/ - The Verge AI: https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/1005451/google-gemini-free-flash-lite-only - SCMP — Business (Greater China): https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3369757/chinas-ai-race-accelerates-model-fatigue-becomes-next-challenge?utm_source=rss_feed - indiatimes.com: https://www.indiatimes.com/trending/denial-panic-then-a-tiktok-trend-could-ai-really-wipe-out-40-of-jobs-and-leave-society-scrambling-for-answers/articleshow/134724740.html - TechCrunch AI: https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/06/pinterests-ai-now-turns-beauty-pins-into-action-plans/ https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/a-eye-on-ai--7245888