The sudden rise of Chinese AI app DeepSeek has leaders in Washington and Silicon Valley grappling with how to keep the U.S. ahead in the crucial technology.

By Kenrick Cai, Anna Tong, Jeffrey Dastin SAN FRANCISCO -Developers at leading U.S. AI firms are praising the DeepSeek AI models that have leapt into prominence while also trying to poke holes in the notion that their multi-billion dollar technology has been bested by a Chinese newcomer's low-cost alternative.

Top White House advisers this week expressed alarm that China's DeepSeek may have benefited from a method that allegedly piggybacks off the advances of U.S. rivals called "distillation." The technique,