The AI-Feeding Frenzy: A Cautionary Tale of Overhyped AI Solutions

This AI-feeding frenzy reminds me more and more of the dot-com bubble in the late 1990s, but with less focus on overpaying employees. As it was then, the core issue now is companies screaming that their AI is better, but most buyers are still not well enough informed or trained to deploy AI effectively.

Addressing the Quality Issue

One of the big problems DeepSeek seemed to address out of the box is that quality is important in an AI. What makes DeepSeek interesting is that rather than glossing over that problem, it addressed it up front, resulting in what appears to be both a cheaper and better AI alternative.

Optimizing for Cost Savings

It is also fascinating that because DeepSeek was blocked from using Nvidia’s current top AI technologies, its developers optimized the model to work better on older Nvidia technology. The result appears to be 94% cost savings in creating the model.

The Trade-Off: Security Concerns

These cost savings have improved performance while reducing expenses. The trade-off is the typical security concern and potential model corruption by the Chinese government, although China may simply be using a filter that blocks unacceptable queries and doesn’t corrupt the core AI.

Product of the Week: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra

Let’s discuss AI-wars this week, with a focus on DeepSeek. We’ll close with my Product of the Week from Samsung, which is arguably the most premium non-foldable phone on the market and a standout.

A Premium Phone with Advanced Features

It’s sleeker than its predecessor, with a bigger, brighter, and tougher display. It also allows actions across multiple apps. Its 50 MP camera is amazing, and its AI will work out of the box (Apple’s AI lagged in its latest phone announcement). Some iPhone users who have tested this product found it better than their Apple phones, which is high praise.

The Power of AI in Seamless App Navigation

The ability to span apps with AI can be very useful. For instance, you can look up a date for a coming event, put that event on your calendar, and send details to whoever is going with you with a single prompt. This feature continues to make me wonder if separate apps will even be a thing in the future since this phone can seamlessly move between apps using agentic AI to complete complex tasks like the one just mentioned.

Noise Cancellation and Color Options

While the phone has some interesting noise cancellation features, early testing has been mixed, suggesting there may be a learning curve to getting the tech to work properly or the need for a patch, which is not unusual for a brand-new advanced feature. The phone comes in several colors. I like the Titanium Jetblack (pictured above with the S pen) the best.

A Showcase of Qualcomm’s Advanced Technology

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is as much a showcase of Qualcomm’s advanced technology as it is of Samsung’s. It is arguably one of, if not the best, premium phones on the market and my Product of the Week.