Bitcoin's Big Dip: Tech Stocks Tumble as Chinese AI Firm Enters the Scene

Bitcoin took a hit early in the day on Monday, dropping below $100, 000. It didn't take long for the world's largest cryptocurrency by market cap to recover from its low point of $97, 900. Seems like Bitcoin's gains from the recent industry-friendly regulations and a national crypto stockpile announced by the president were not enough. The price dropped$100, 000 mark, but soon enough its value came back up to $101, 295. This just shows how much influence the tech market has on crypto. The thing is, tech stocks had a big shake-up early Monday morning. The news? A Chinese AI firm, DeepSeek, was launching a new model. This put a lot of pressure on tech stocks. Why? Because the Chinese new technology was built using cheaper chips that are made by Nvidia. If more companies start using these cheaper chips, then there could be trouble for Nvidia. How so? Well, DeepSeek released a large language model last December. The company said they made it in just two months for under $6 million in total. Now, for comparison, many other companies couldn't have dreamt of doing something like that for so cheap so quickly. Another big news coming in at the same time, the Federal Reserve will make a crucial decision. The Fed policymakers have been keeping an eye on inflation and the strength of the labor market. They are sure to keep rates where they are or maybe even cut them. Powell talks about inflation and the economy in a news conference back in December. He stated, "For any extra reductions in interest rates, we'll be watching inflation and the labor market. If the economy and the labor market look strong, we’ll be careful before deciding to lower them again. "Right now, the interest rate in the US is 4. 25, This rate is planned to stay the same unless there are extreme cases. Investors are highly skeptical of the market. These sudden dips and plunges are causing major anxiety amongst investors. And who can blame them? The global market is a very volatile place right now, This is especially true with the unexpected advances from DeepSeek putting pressure on US tech giants, along with the unknowns from the Fed. What a rollercoaster ride for tech and crypto fans through these last weeks. It's a sight that is not uncommon for a lot of people but is still difficult to understand.