But governments from Rome to Seoul are cracking down on the user-friendly Chinese app, saying they need to prevent potential leaks of sensitive information through generative AI services.
Who has banned DeepSeek?
Italy’s Data Protection Authority had briefly blocked Western competitor ChatGPT in 2023.
Australia following suit days after.
On Monday, authorities there said that DeepSeek would not be available from local app stores while a review of its handling of personal data is carried out.
State-level bans were also issued in Texas, Virginia and New York.
Why are they worried?
But while US companies typically resist government requests for data, “in China when the government requests access, companies are legally obligated to provide user data”, said Youm Heung-youl, a data security professor at Soonchunhyang University.
According to DeepSeek’s privacy policy, it also collects information on “key stroke patterns or rhythms” which detects how an individual interacts with each button.
DeepSeek “have a policy of aligning with the core values of socialism” Isabel Hou, Taiwanese AI expert and secretary-general of Taiwan AI Academy told AFP.
“But we find that DeepSeek actually uses the same set of rules when providing services overseas,“ Hou added.
It says the Chinese government “will never require enterprises or individuals to illegally collect or store data”.
“DeepSeek was launched in May of 2023, and something like this can’t just emerge overnight,“ Park Seung-chan, Chinese studies professor at Yongin University told AFP.
According to data from the Korea Chamber of Commerce, China ranked second among the world’s top R&D investors, following the US, but showed the most significant growth, with its investment volume soaring more than 11-fold over the past decade.
What next?
While semiconductor exporting powerhouses South Korea and Taiwan have been thriving on sales of cutting-edge chips, DeepSeek has thrown the industry into turmoil.
“Countries like the US and China are investing massive amounts of talent and resources into software development,“ he said, adding that DeepSeek showed governments needed to boost this further and “provide support to foster this growth”.
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