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Physix Frontier · News Briefing Card (IT Home · Sep 19, 2026)

DeepSeek cuts API costs on Chinese makeup workdays

KEY FACTS

  • DeepSeek has introduced a new rule charging off-peak rates for the entire day on makeup work weekends.
  • During Chinese statutory holidays, API call fees are uniformly charged at off-peak rates.
  • Previously, regular Saturdays and Sundays were already billed at off-peak prices all day without peak-valley distinctions.

PHYSIX OBSERVATION

By incorporating 'makeup workdays' into the low-price tier, DeepSeek precisely addresses developer pain points. This is not merely a minor price adjustment but a deep adaptation to China's unique labor rhythm. Eliminating billing fluctuations on weekends and holidays reduces operational costs for enterprises during non-working hours, reflecting an AI vendor's pragmatic effort to balance user experience with computing resource utilization in commercialization.

Source: IT Home report