DeepSeek launched its R1 chatbot this month, claiming it matches the capacity of artificial intelligence pace-setters in the United States for a fraction of the investment.
The news sparked a rout in tech titans -- Nvidia dived 17 percent Monday -- and raised questions about the hundreds of billions of dollars invested in AI in recent years.
But countries now including South Korea, France, Australia and Italy have questions about DeepSeek's data practices.
"We intend to submit our request in writing as early as Friday to obtain information about how DeepSeek handles personal data," an official from South Korea's Personal Information Protection Commission told AFP, without giving further details.
-'Be very careful'-
Italy launched an investigation this week into the R1 model and blocked it from processing Italian users' data.
The Italian Data Protection Agency is asking what information is used to train DeepSeek's AI system and, if the data is scraped from the internet, how users are informed about the processing of their data.
French watchdog CNIL also said it would question DeepSeek about its chatbot "to better understand the way it works and the risks regarding data protection".
On Tuesday, Australia's science minister Ed Husic raised privacy concerns over the company's AI service and urged users to think carefully before downloading it.
"There are a lot of questions that will need to be answered in time on quality, consumer preferences, data and privacy management," Husic told national broadcaster ABC.
"I would be very careful about that. These type of issues need to be weighed up carefully," he added.
The Italian watchdog in December fined OpenAI 15 million euros ($15.6 million) over the use of personal data by its popular ChatGPT chatbot, but the US tech firm said it would appeal.
Italy also temporarily blocked ChatGPT over privacy concerns in March 2023, becoming the first Western country to take such action.
DeepSeek has said it used less-advanced H800 chips -- permitted for sale to China until 2023 under US export controls -- to power its large learning model.
South Korean chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are key suppliers of advanced chips used in AI servers.
Worries about the impact of DeepSeek battered stocks in Seoul as the market reopened after an extended break Friday.
Samsung fell more than two percent, while SK hynix plunged almost 12 percent at one point.
But several industry leaders have welcomed DeepSeek's arrival and the injection of competition, while analysts have flagged the benefits of the shake-up.
Italy data watchdog restricts DeepSeek, opens probe
Rome (AFP) Jan 30, 2025 -
Italy's Data Protection Agency on Thursday launched an investigation into the AI chatbot of Chinese startup DeepSeek and said it had blocked it from processing Italian users' data.
The GPDP said it had decided to act after receiving "completely insufficient" answers to its questions about the firm's use of personal data.
In a statement, it said it had ordered "urgently and with immediate effect the restriction of the processing of data of Italian users by Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence and Beijing DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence, the Chinese companies that provide the DeepSeek chatbot service".
At the same time, the authority had opened an investigation, it said.
"The restriction measure, designed to protect the data of Italian users, follows the communication from the companies received today, the contents of which were deemed completely insufficient," it said.
On Tuesday, the agency announced it had raised questions with DeepSeek about how personal data was collected, from which sources and to what end, and where it was stored.
"Contrary to what was observed by the authority, the companies declared they do not operate in Italy and that European legislation does not apply to them," the statement on Thursday said.
The authority had also asked what kind of information was used to train DeepSeek's AI system and, if the data was scraped from the internet, to clarify how users of the service are informed about the processing of their data.
Based out of the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou -- sometimes known as "China's Silicon Valley" -- DeepSeek sparked panic on Wall Street this week with its powerful new chatbot developed at a fraction of the cost of its competitors.
The Italian watchdog in December fined OpenAI 15 million euros ($15.6 million) over the use of personal data by its popular ChatGPT chatbot, but the US tech firm said it would appeal.
The investigation began in March 2023 when the GPDP temporarily blocked ChatGPT in Italy over privacy concerns, becoming the first Western country to take such action.
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