Users of Chinese chatbot DeepSeek could soon face heavy fines or even prison time under a new US law.
Introduced by Republican Senator Josh Hawley, the new bill aims to “prohibit United States persons from advancing artificial intelligence capabilities within the People’s Republic of China, and for other persons”.
The proposed law would also ban the importation of “technology or intellectual property” developed in China.
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If the law passes, anyone found violating the restrictions could be fined up to $1 million or face up to 20 years in prison. Meanwhile, businesses could face penalties of up to $100 million.
Although the bill doesn't specify DeepSeek by name, it coincidentally comes just a week after the Chinese chatbot became
the most downloaded free app in the US.
Despite the growing concerns about the AI's security, privacy, and ethicality - including DeepSeek’s inability to answer questions about the Chinese Communist Party - US tech stocks took a major hit.
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US President Donald Trump described the Chinese app as a 'wake-up call' for the American tech industry. However, he dismissed any worries, stating that the US will 'remain a dominant player in the field,' according to a BBC report. Meanwhile, the White House is currently reviewing DeepSeek’s potential national security risks.
The United States Navy has already taken action against the technology by banning its members from using it for both work and personal use.
Similarly, NASA has forbidden the use of the AI from government-issued devices and networks.
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Several US states are also considering bans, with Texas becoming the first to block it on government devices.
“Texas will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate our state's critical infrastructure through data-harvesting AI and social media apps,” said Texas Governor Greg Abbott. “Texas will continue to protect and defend our state from hostile foreign actors.”
Over on Reddit, some people are questioning the US government’s motives and extreme measures being taken.
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"Am I the only one who thinks this is surreal?" one social media user wrote.
"Competition is illegal," another added whilst someone else commented: "They want to protect gpt at all costs".
Cybersecurity experts are warning that DeepSeek may pose a bigger threat to businesses and governments than TikTok, as the chatbot stores data on servers in China.
“DeepSeek represents a clear risk for any enterprise whose leadership values data privacy, security and transparency,” said Bill Conner, CEO of automation firm Jitterbit and former security advisor to the US government.
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“As stated in their own privacy policy, DeepSeek is a shared cloud service run in China with data being stored in China – potentially introducing unknown risks to data privacy, compliance mandates and security controls.”