Models and the services around them
DeepSeek develops AI models and provides them through a web interface, mobile apps, and an API. It handles questions, writing, reasoning, programming, reading files, and web search.
The name refers both to the company and service overall and to the model family such as DeepSeek-V4. Much as ChatGPT is the service and GPT the model, the DeepSeek interface runs whichever DeepSeek model is current.
Ways to use it
- Chat through the web version or the app
- Get answers that include recent information using search
- Load documents and ask for summaries or organization
- Work through complex problems in a thinking mode
- Build it into your own applications through the API
Models offer both a fast-response mode and a mode that spends longer reasoning. As of July 2026 the API lists DeepSeek-V4-Flash and DeepSeek-V4-Pro, though names and availability change.
Compared with ChatGPT and Claude
ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek all offer conversational AI. They differ in the models behind them, what they are good at, app features, external integrations, pricing, and data handling.
DeepSeek drew attention for publishing model weights and for relatively low API pricing. Not all DeepSeek models are released on the same terms, though — free chat, the paid API, and open models you run yourself are distinct ways of using it.
Cautions
Plausible answers can still get figures, names, and sources wrong. Verify anything important against official information or multiple sources, and when search was used, check that the cited page actually supports the claim.
Where input and files are stored, whether they are used for training, and which regions are supported vary by service. Read the terms and privacy policy before entering personal or confidential material, and obtain apps from the official site or a legitimate store.