The DeepSeek application has begun to be removed from the App Store in the US and Europe – the reason

DeepSeek has been the focus of investigations in the US and Europe due to data privacy concerns. In Italy, the app has already disappeared from the App Store, and it is likely that this will happen again in other countries.

This is reported by 9to5Mac.

What is DeepSeek

DeepSeek — is an artificial intelligence-based chatbot developed in China. Its tests have shown performance that rivals the best models in the world. Experts confirmed these results, noting that Chinese developers managed to achieve this level at significantly lower costs than US companies.

The app quickly became the most popular app on the App Store, sparking concerns about the overvalued valuations of US AI companies. It was previously thought that the high cost of developing large language models (LLMs) would give OpenAI, Google and Meta an advantage, while demand for Nvidia GPUs would remain steady. However, DeepSeek has challenged these assumptions, sending shares of several tech companies lower.

What are the privacy concerns

Like most AI chatbots, DeepSeek can use user interactions to train its models, raising questions about privacy.

The fact that the app originated in China only added to the concerns. Reuters reports that the Italian data protection regulator (Garante) has asked the company to explain what personal data is collected, where it comes from, for what purpose it is used, and on what legal basis. It also asked whether the data is stored in China. The developers were given 20 days to respond.

In parallel, DeepSeek has also come to the attention of the authorities in the United States. White House officials said that the National Security Council is reviewing possible threats related to the app.

After the Italian regulator's request, DeepSeek has disappeared from the App Store and Google Play in Italy. It is currently unknown whether this was a decision of the platforms themselves or the developers.

In addition to Italy, the Irish Data Protection Agency has also raised the issue of compliance with privacy rules. Since the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) covers all 27 EU countries and three states of the European Economic Area, in the event of a negative conclusion, the application may be banned in 30 countries.

Is DeepSeek an exception

The privacy issue is not new for generative AI services. Many chatbots have similar data collection policies, but Chinese companies have traditionally aroused more distrust than American ones.

Apple Intelligence is an exception — the service does not use user data for training. In addition, Apple's agreement with OpenAI ensures that ChatGPT also does not store data when used through Siri. This makes using ChatGPT through Siri the safest option among popular AI solutions.