Illinois Congressman Darin LaHood seeks to ban DeepSeek from federal government devices
Illinois Congressman Darin LaHood is spearheading an effort to ban Chinese artificial intelligence app DeepSeek from being used on any federal government devices.
The Republican from Peoria joined U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, in introducing the "No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act," which would prohibit federal employees from using the app on government-owned electronic devices.
The lawmakers cited the Chinese government's ability to use the app to spy on users and spread misinformation.
"From a national security standpoint, we have to understand China is an adversary, and when you look at this app, and you look at DeepSeek, and the direct connection to the CCP – the Communist Chinese Party – that's deeply disturbing to me, and Congressman Gottheimer, and a number of other people," said LaHood, who is a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
The Trump administration and cybersecurity experts also have raised concerns that DeepSeek's technology could be a national security threat to the U.S.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said last month that the National Security Council (NSC) would examine possible national security implications from DeepSeek, adding that the administration would seek to "ensure American AI dominance."
Some members of Congress also have shared concerns about DeepSeek's access to American users.
"The U.S. cannot allow Chinese Communist Party models such as DeepSeek to risk our national security and leverage our technology to advance their AI ambitions," U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Mich.), who chairs the bipartisan House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said in a statement on social media. "We must work to swiftly place stronger export controls on technologies critical to DeepSeek's AI infrastructure."
India, Australia and South Korea have already banned DeepSeek on government devices.
The app rattled also nerves last week on Wall Street, as concerns that China might be catching up to the U.S. in the AI race sent tech stocks tumbling.
The China and U.S. are in an arms race over AI, and DeepSeek's technology uses inferior computer chips that cost 20 to 30 times less than leading American companies.
DeepSeek's introduction in the U.S. on Jan. 17 saw it swiftly become the most downloaded free app on Apple Store. California-based Nvidia, which makes chips that power AI, lost $593 billion in market value on the same day, the biggest one-day loss in history.
