TL;DRMoonshot’s Kimi K3, a 2.8-trillion-parameter open model billed as the largest ever, helped trigger a global tech and semiconductor selloff, reviving “DeepSeek moment” comparisons. The angle: the rout was multi-causal (weak Netflix and TSMC earnings, the Iran war, risk-off, rate fears), with Kimi one trigger among several. The deeper fear it amplified is real: if capable AI is becoming free, the ~$700bn hyperscalers are spending may not pay back, a risk Apollo’s Torsten Sloek warned could tip the economy into recession.
A new Chinese AI model has rattled global markets, sending tech and chip stocks sharply lower. Moonshot’s Kimi K3 surprised investors and helped fuel a broad selloff, Bloomberg reports.
Traders quickly labelled it a “Kimi moment”, echoing the DeepSeek shock of early 2025. The comparison is doing a lot of work, and not all of it is fair.
What Kimi K3 is
By size, Kimi K3 is the largest open AI model yet released. It is a 2.8-trillion-parameter system with a million-token context window, and TNW has covered its debut as the world’s largest open model.
