For much of 2023 and early 2024, the narrative around Artificial Intelligence was dominated by scale. Bigger models, more parameters, and an insatiable hunger for GPUs defined the race. That race isn’t over, but it’s fundamentally changing. We’re now in a new era: a relentless push for efficiency. And this shift is dramatically reshaping the AI landscape, lowering barriers to entry and elevating China as a major force on the global stage.