To run DeepSeek R1 AI models, you'll need some serious hardware. For the full models, a GPU with substantial VRAM, such as Nvidia RTX 3090 or higher, is recommended. If you're using a CPU, you'll need at least 48GB of RAM and 250GB of disk space, but keep in mind that performance will be slow without GPU acceleration.
For local deployment with less resource-intensive hardware, DeepSeek offers distilled versions of the model, ranging from 1.5B to 70B parameters. These models can run on systems with more modest hardware, such as a GPU with at least 6GB VRAM or a CPU with about 4GB RAM for the GGML/GGUF format.
Some users have reported successfully running the model on various hardware configurations, including dual EPYC CPUs with 24 x 16GB DDR5 RAM, achieving around 5-8 tokens per second. Others have reported running the distilled versions of the model on Nvidia RTX 3080 GPUs and AMD MI300X hardware, although with some limitations.
The specific hardware requirements may vary depending on the version of the model and the desired level of performance. As AI models continue to evolve, it's essential to stay up-to-date with the latest hardware requirements to ensure optimal performance.
