A roundtable discussion focusing on the opportunities and challenges brought by DeepSeek for open education was hosted by Department of Student Affairs and Teacher Development at the Open University of China (OUC). Six experienced AI experts and educators shared their views on “New Possibilities for Open Education Empowered by DeepSeek”, sparking dynamic discussions about AI’s role in reshaping the futures of education. This event was broadcast live to the Open University faculty nationwide, attracting 3,021 live viewers and 279 replay viewers.

Participants at a Roundtable Discussion

CHENG Gang, Director of OUC Department of Digitalisation, outlined DeepSeek’s contributions to AI development and encouraged educators and students to embrace domestic smart tools for ecosystem growth. Professor HAN Yanhui from the School of Foreign Languages emphasised balancing application of AI tools with enhancement of teacher-student emotional connections during the process of language education reform. Professor WANG Li from the School of Engineering highlighted AI’s transformative impact across teaching support systems and online learning value chains and pointed out that “Our platform’s functions are evolving from content delivery to cognitive enhancement”. His colleague LAI Yuxuan provided technical insights into DeepSeek’s architecture, while Engineering Centre researcher LIU Xingguo noted the acceleration of reasoning model development and paradigm shifts in educational focus caused by DeepSeek, that is from knowledge transfer to critical thinking cultivation. YUAN Jiazheng, Dean of the Intelligent Education Research Institute at Beijing Open University, addressed some practical considerations, acknowledging DeepSeek’s potential for personalised teaching and learning. YUAN also highlighted the importance of technical specifications, academic integrity protocols, and risk management, particularly in relation to linguistic biases, intellectual property, and data security.

With the increasing emergence of AI tools, the question of whether to use them or not, and whether to accept them or not, is becoming more and more relevant to everyone. The six experts participating in the Roundtable unanimously suggest using AI first, and then evaluating how it influences your work or life, whether the impact is positive or not.

By OUC