New Delhi, Jan. 30 -- In the wake of a breakthrough by Chinese upstart DeepSeek in affordable AI computing, executives at Microsoft and Meta have defended their significant investments in AI infrastructure, despite growing concerns over mounting costs and investor impatience.

DeepSeek, a rising player in the AI space, has stunned the tech industry with claims that its models can compete with, and even surpass, Western counterparts, all at a fraction of the cost. This rapid progress has sparked doubts about the U.S.'s dominant position in AI, with some observers questioning whether the enormous capital investments made by U.S. tech giants can continue to guarantee a competitive edge.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg emphasised the importance of ...