I regularly compare models. You are right Deepseek was more impressive when the latest came out. But since then they accepted to slow down throughout and keep the same quality.

I often compare with Gemini. Sure those Google servers are super fast. But I can't see it better. Qwen and deepseek simply work better for me.

Haven't tested Mistral in a while, you may be right.

People try out and feel comfortable: using U.S models (I can see the logic), but mostly for brand recognition. Anthropic and OpenAi are the best aren't they? When the models jam they blame themselves.