DeepSeek Challenges "Computing Power Dollar" Paradigm

Financial Blog

March 18, 2025

DeepSeek Challenges "Computing Power Dollar" Paradigm

Advertisements

The essence of currency lies in its role as a symbolic carrier of value.

In the mid-20th century, the establishment of the Bretton Woods system marked the dominance of the "golden dollar." Under this system, the dollar was pegged to gold, while other currencies were linked to the dollar, creating a dollar-centric international monetary frameworkThrough this arrangement, the United States seized control over international currency issuance, with the dollar emerging as the world's primary reserve and settlement currencyThis advantage enabled the U.Sto expand its economic footprint globally, accruing vast economic benefitsYet, as time passed, the economic strength of the U.Sbegan to wane, leading to significant issues with imbalances in international payments

Advertisements

The fixed exchange rate between the dollar and gold became increasingly untenableIn 1971, the U.Sdeclared the dollar's decoupling from gold, signaling the collapse of the Bretton Woods system and the end of the golden dollar era.

However, as the supremacy of oil faces challenges from the new energy revolution and U.Sdebt surpasses $35 trillion, the Federal Reserve finds itself in urgent need of identifying new value support for the dollar, trying to leverage technological advancements for revitalization.

In recent years, the concept of "computing power dollars" has emerged.

The U.S

Advertisements

is attempting to link the credibility of the dollar with the foundational resources of digital civilization by controlling the global AI chip supply chain and computing power infrastructure, thereby establishing a technological monopoly aimed at rebranding the dollar.

In the past 80 years, one could argue that the dollar, a king of the seas, has undergone various transformations using gold and oilIt proudly proclaimed its “strict ties with gold” during the gold era, only to abandon it in 1971. Following that, it redirected its focus to the Middle East, converting black gold via oil trade into green bills; today, amidst the challenges posed by new energy and domestic as well as international pressures, it seeks to leverage the "computing power dollar" to play the tech card.

Furthermore, there are attempts at a "carbon tax dollar." Financial magnates have devised plans to tie the dollar to carbon emission rights, suggesting that those who emit more must use dollars to purchase "redemption certificates," intending to profit from environmental policies.

Nonetheless, this strategy encountered fierce opposition from Republicans, concerned about hindrances to manufacturing's return

Advertisements

Meanwhile, China rapidly ascends in the new energy sector, with industries such as photovoltaic, wind energy, and new energy vehicles thwarting America’s "green pig slaughter" plan.

As a result, the "carbon tax dollar" never formally came to fruition and has cooled down, dubbed a "bamboo basket to fetch water" in the financial world.

Facing pressures from both domestic and international fronts, American politicians defiantly introduced the "computing power dollar" plan:

The first move involved marketing Nvidia's H100 chip as "digital bricks," claiming that training AI necessitates purchasing access to computing power with dollars;

the second maneuver saw substantial investment in building AI data centers, hoarding GPU resources;

the third strategy leveraged stock market maneuvers to inflate Nvidia's market value to unprecedented heights.

However, by early 2025, Chinese company DeepSeek utilized graphics cards at minimal costs to shatter the training records of OpenAI, even releasing open-source code inviting users to review, prompting Wall Street to plummet in a "waterfall dive," signaling unprecedented challenges to the American technological dream.

The dollar's transformation is akin to a philanderer seeking new alliances, with its credibility diminishing as its labels shift.

Technological supremacy is not set in stone; historically, from Britain's steam engine to America's chip monopoly, and now to surrounding AI developments, China has consistently found ways to triumph.

The enormous U.S

debt functions like a ticking time bomb, and under various new conceptions, it will eventually face exposure to debt risks.

Looking ahead, global currency competition is poised to intensify furtherChina's rise in the electric vehicle sector, the gradual shift of the Middle East towards using local currencies for trade, and Europe's exploration of digital currencies all signal unprecedented challenges to dollar dominance.

Once, the "gold dollar" and "oil dollar" alternated in history, and now the "computing power dollar" also faces technological and market dual dilemmasShould the dollar lose its technological edge, its era of magic will indeed draw to a close, while Eastern technological civilization may well become a critical pillar in the new international financial order.

In this transformation of currency from tangible to virtual, resources to technology, we witness both the helplessness behind the facade of traditional currency and the silent dawn of the digital civilization era approaching.

As history's wheel rolls forward, we await to see who will genuinely seize control of the symbols of future value.

alefox