Italy's Data Privacy Watchdog Probes Chinese AI Model DeepSeek
ROME (Reuters) - Italy's data protection authority has requested information from Chinese AI (artificial intelligence) company DeepSeek regarding its use of personal data. The Italian regulator, known as the Garante, seeks clarification on the types of personal data collected, its sources, purposes, legal basis, and storage location (i.e., whether data is stored within China). DeepSeek and its associated companies have 20 days to respond, according to the Garante's statement.
This regulatory action marks one of the first instances where a Chinese startup has faced scrutiny for data protection practices. In the United States, the White House press secretary confirmed that officials are examining potential national security implications associated with the DeepSeek app.
DeepSeek, marketed as an affordable alternative to American AI models, caused a sell-off in tech stocks on Monday after its free AI assistant surpassed OpenAI's ChatGPT on Apple's App Store in the United States.
Italy's Garante is known for its active involvement in monitoring the deployment of AI technologies. In 2023, it briefly prohibited the use of Microsoft-backed ChatGPT due to potential violations of EU privacy regulations.