DeepSeek v4 is now available on the web: How to access and test it

In a move that has sent ripples through the global AI community, DeepSeek has quietly rolled out a gray-scale test of its highly anticipated V4 model on the web. Leaked interface screenshots reveal a transformative three-mode system—Fast, Expert, and Vision—positioning DeepSeek V4 as a multimodal powerhouse with deep-reasoning capabilities that could rival or surpass leading models like Claude Opus and GPT-5 variants.

This isn't just another incremental update. With rumored 1 trillion parameters, a 1 million token context window powered by novel Engram memory architecture, and native image/video processing, DeepSeek V4 promises to deliver enterprise-grade performance at consumer-friendly costs. Whether you're a developer building agents, a researcher tackling complex analysis, or a business seeking cutting-edge multimodal AI, this guide covers everything you need to know.

At CometAPI, we’ve been tracking DeepSeek’s evolution closely. As a unified AI API platform offering DeepSeek V3.2 and earlier models at up to 20% off official pricing with seamless OpenAI-compatible endpoints, we’re excited for V4’s integration. Later in this post, we’ll show how CometAPI can future-proof your workflows once V4 goes fully live.

What Is DeepSeek V4?

DeepSeek V4 represents the next evolution in the Chinese AI lab’s flagship V-series. Building on the success of DeepSeek-V3 and V3.2—which introduced hybrid thinking/non-thinking modes and strong agentic capabilities—V4 scales dramatically in size, intelligence, and versatility.

Industry analysts estimate V4 as a Mixture-of-Experts (MoE) model exceeding 1 trillion total parameters, with only ~37-40 billion active per token for efficiency. This architecture, refined from V3’s MoE foundation, activates specialized “experts” dynamically, slashing inference costs while boosting performance on coding, math, and long-context tasks.

Key differentiators include:

• Native multimodal support (text + images + video).
• Ultra-long context up to 1M tokens via Engram conditional memory.
• Domestic hardware optimization—V4 is designed to run primarily on Huawei Ascend chips, reflecting China’s push for technological self-reliance.

DeepSeek has a track record of open-sourcing models under Apache 2.0, making V4 potentially one of the most accessible frontier models. Leaked benchmarks suggest it could hit 90% on HumanEval and 80%+ on SWE-bench Verified, putting it in direct competition with Claude Opus 4.5/4.6 and GPT-5 Codex variants. V4 is not a simple incremental update — it represents a full product-matrix redesign with tiered modes for different user needs, similar to Kimi’s Fast/Expert stratification but with added Vision.

Latest Updates Regarding DeepSeek V4

As of April 2026, DeepSeek V4 is in limited gray-scale testing rather than a full public launch. Multiple programmers and Weibo influencers shared screenshots of the updated chat interface on April 7-8, showing a dramatic overhaul from the previous dual-option (Deep Thinking R1 / Smart Search) layout.

The new UI introduces a prominent mode switcher with three options:

• Fast Mode (default, unlimited daily use for casual tasks).
• Expert Mode.
• Vision Mode.

V4 will leverage Huawei’s latest silicon, with a full launch expected “in the next few weeks” from early April.

Fast Mode (also called Instant) is default and unlimited for daily use. Expert Mode emphasizes deep thinking and shows higher token throughput in some tests (~64 tokens/s vs. ~49 for Fast). Vision Mode enables direct image/video upload and analysis.

• Some early testers report 1M context and updated knowledge cutoff (post-2025 data); others note Expert still feels like optimized V3.2 with 128K limits — confirming the gradual nature of gray-scale.

The company has remained silent on official naming, but the interface changes, multimodal hints, and alignment with earlier leaks (three-model suite on domestic chips) strongly indicate these are V4 variants in testing. Full launch is widely expected “this month” (April 2026).

What Is the New Functional Architecture of DeepSeek V4? (Quick Version vs. Expert Version Speculation)

Leaked details point to a sophisticated three-tiered architecture that separates everyday efficiency from high-stakes reasoning and multimodal processing.

Fast Mode (Quick Version): Optimized for instant responses and high-throughput daily dialogue. Analysts believe this routes to a lightweight distilled variant or a smaller active-parameter slice of the MoE model. It supports file uploads and basic tasks with minimal latency—perfect for quick queries or prototyping. Unlimited daily use makes it ideal for casual users.

Expert Mode (Deep Reasoning Version): Widely speculated to be the true “DeepSeek V4” core. It emphasizes multi-step reasoning, domain-specific enhancements, visualization of thought processes, and strengthened citation tracing. Insiders link it to the “new memory architecture” (Engram conditional memory) detailed in papers signed by DeepSeek’s leadership. Engram separates static knowledge (O(1) hash lookups) from dynamic reasoning, enabling stable 1M-token contexts without exploding compute costs. Early testers report superior logic stability and self-correction on complex problems.

Vision Mode: The multimodal flagship, capable of native image/video understanding and generation. Unlike traditional VLMs bolted onto text models, speculation suggests a “deep unified world model” architecture—potentially integrating visual tokens directly into the MoE routing for seamless cross-modal reasoning.

This Quick-vs-Expert split allows DeepSeek to serve both mass-market users (Fast) and power users (Expert/Vision) without compromising either experience. Full commercialization may introduce quotas on Expert/Vision while keeping Fast free/unlimited.

DeepSeek V4’s Visual and Expert Mode by Gray-Scale Test

The gray-scale exposure has been the biggest catalyst for excitement. I test:

• Expert Mode triggers longer internal “thinking” (visible chain-of-thought in some views) and produces more accurate, cited outputs.
• Vision Mode automatically engages when images are attached, redirecting prompts for analysis or generation.

These features align with DeepSeek’s published research on manifold-constrained hyper-connections (mHC) and DeepSeek Sparse Attention (DSA)—innovations that stabilize training at trillion-parameter scale and improve long-horizon agentic tasks.

Expert Mode may already be running an early V4 checkpoint, explaining the perceived intelligence jump. Vision Mode’s separation suggests it’s not a simple add-on but a core architectural pillar.

How to Access and Use DeepSeek V4 on the Web: Step-by-Step Guide

Accessing the gray-scale version is straightforward but currently limited:

1. Visit the official platform: Head to chat.deepseek.com or platform.deepseek.com and log in with your DeepSeek account (free signup available).
2. Look for the mode selector: If you’re in the gray-scale cohort, you’ll see the new Fast/Expert/Vision buttons. Not everyone has it yet—rollout is phased.
3. Select your mode:

• Start with Fast Mode for everyday chats.
• Switch to Expert Mode for complex reasoning, coding, or research.
• Upload images/videos to trigger Vision Mode.

1. Prompt effectively: For Expert, use detailed instructions like “Think step-by-step and verify your logic.” For Vision, describe images precisely (e.g., “Analyze this chart for trends and generate a summary table”).
2. Monitor limits: Fast is unlimited; Expert and Vision may have daily quotas during testing.

Pro tip: Enable web search or file uploads where available for richer context.

If gray-scale access isn’t available yet, you can still use DeepSeek-V3.2 (the current production model) on the same site. Full V4 rollout is imminent—monitor CometAPI.

How to Integrate DeepSeek V4 into Your Workflow via API

While web access is great for exploration, production use demands reliable APIs. Official DeepSeek API currently serves V3.2 (128K context), but V4 endpoints are expected soon.

Enter CometAPI: As a one-stop AI API aggregator, CometAPI already delivers DeepSeek V3, V3.1, V3.2, and R1 models with OpenAI-compatible endpoints, 20% lower pricing, free starter credits, usage analytics, and automatic failover across providers. No code changes needed when V4 drops—we’ll add it seamlessly.

Quick setup on CometAPI:

• Register at cometapi.com.
• Generate an API key (sk-xxx).
• Use base URL https://api.cometapi.com and model names like deepseek-v4-expert (once live).
• Example Python call:

  from openai import OpenAI
  client = OpenAI(api_key="your_cometapi_key", base_url="https://api.cometapi.com")
  response = client.chat.completions.create(
      model="deepseek-v4-expert",  # or vision variant
      messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Your prompt here"}]
  )

CometAPI’s playground lets you test V4 modes side-by-side with Claude or GPT without switching dashboards. For businesses, this means lower costs, predictable billing, and no vendor lock-in—ideal for scaling agentic workflows or multimodal apps.

Key Capabilities and Benchmarks of DeepSeek V4

Leaked data paints an impressive picture:

• Coding: ~90% HumanEval, 80%+ SWE-bench Verified (projected to match or beat Claude Opus 4.6).
• Reasoning: Enhanced MATH-500 (~96%) and long-context Needle-in-Haystack (97% at 1M tokens).
• Multimodal: Native image/video understanding plus SVG/code generation far superior to V3.
• Efficiency: MoE keeps costs low; Engram memory reduces VRAM needs by ~45% vs. dense models.

Real-world tests in Expert Mode show stronger self-correction and repository-level coding compared to V3.2.

How Does DeepSeek V4 Compare to Other Leading AI Models?

V4’s edge lies in cost-performance and open accessibility, making frontier AI available to smaller teams.

What Are Practical Use Cases for DeepSeek V4?

• Software Development: Expert Mode for multi-file refactoring, bug detection, and full repo analysis.
• Multimodal Analysis: Upload charts, diagrams, or videos for instant insights (Vision Mode).
• Agentic Workflows: Long-context memory powers autonomous research agents.
• Content & Design: Generate accurate SVG/code from descriptions; analyze visual data.
• Education/Research: Step-by-step explanations with verifiable citations.

Why Choose CometAPI for DeepSeek V4 and Beyond?

For developers and enterprises, the web chat is a starting point—but scalable production requires robust infrastructure. CometAPI delivers exactly that: discounted DeepSeek access today (V3.2 at $0.22–$0.35/M tokens) and a clear migration path to V4. Features like prompt caching, analytics, and multi-model routing reduce costs by 20-30% while eliminating downtime risks. Whether you’re building the next AI agent or embedding vision capabilities, CometAPI ensures you’re ready the moment V4 API drops.

Conclusion

By offering frontier-level multimodal intelligence for free with tiered modes, DeepSeek is democratizing advanced AI while optimizing for domestic compute. This pressures Western labs on both performance and price, accelerating the entire industry toward more efficient, accessible models.

DeepSeek V4 isn’t just an upgrade—it’s a blueprint for efficient, accessible superintelligence. Start experimenting on the web today, and prepare your stack with CometAPI for seamless scaling tomorrow.