DeepSeek V3-0324 beats rival AI models in open-source first

DeepSeek V3-0324 has become the highest-scoring non-reasoning model on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index in a landmark achievement for open-source AI.

The new model advanced seven points in the benchmark to surpass proprietary counterparts such as Google’s Gemini 2.0 Pro, Anthropic’s Claude 3.7 Sonnet, and Meta’s Llama 3.3 70B.

While V3-0324 trails behind reasoning models, including DeepSeek’s own R1 and offerings from OpenAI and Alibaba, the achievement highlights the growing viability of open-source solutions in latency-sensitive applications where immediate responses are critical.

DeepSeek V3-0324 represents a new era for open-source AI

Non-reasoning models – which generate answers instantly without deliberative “thinking” phases – are essential for real-time use cases like chatbots, customer service automation, and live translation. DeepSeek’s latest iteration now sets the standard for these applications, eclipsing even leading proprietary tools.

“This is the first time an open weights model is the leading non-reasoning model, a milestone for open source,” states Artificial Analysis. The model’s performance edges it closer to proprietary reasoning models, though the latter remain superior for tasks requiring complex problem-solving.

DeepSeek V3-0324 retains most specifications from its December 2024 predecessor, including:  

• 128k context window (capped at 64k via DeepSeek’s API)
• 671 billion total parameters, necessitating over 700GB of GPU memory for FP8 precision
• 37 billion active parameters
• Text-only functionality (no multimodal support) 
• MIT License

“Still not something you can run at home!” Artificial Analysis quips, emphasising its enterprise-grade infrastructure requirements.

Open-source AI is bringing the heat

While proprietary reasoning models like DeepSeek R1 maintain dominance in the broader Intelligence Index, the gap is narrowing.

Three months ago, DeepSeek V3 nearly matched Anthropic’s and Google’s proprietary models but fell short of surpassing them. Today, the updated V3-0324 not only leads open-source alternatives but also outperforms all proprietary non-reasoning rivals.

“This release is arguably even more impressive than R1,” says Artificial Analysis.

DeepSeek’s progress signals a shift in the AI sector, where open-source frameworks increasingly compete with closed systems. For developers and enterprises, the MIT-licensed V3-0324 offers a powerful, adaptable tool—though its computational costs may limit accessibility.

“DeepSeek are now driving the frontier of non-reasoning open weights models,” declares Artificial Analysis.

With R2 on the horizon, the community awaits another potential leap in AI performance.

(Photo by Paul Hanaoka)

See also: Hugging Face calls for open-source focus in the AI Action Plan

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