Microsoft has prohibited its employees from using the AI technology DeepSeek due to concerns about data security, particularly regarding storage in China and potential propaganda influence. This was disclosed by company vice president Brad Smith during hearings in the U.S. Congress, as reported by TechCrunch.
Smith indicated that DeepSeek is not available on the Microsoft Store since user data is stored on servers in China, which could be accessed by local authorities under Chinese law.
Despite the ban, Microsoft previously provided access to the AI model DeepSeek R1 through its cloud platform Azure. Smith mentioned that the company managed to analyze the DeepSeek AI model and "alter" it to eliminate "harmful side effects".
This marks the first public statement from Microsoft regarding restrictions on DeepSeek, although other companies and countries have already implemented similar bans. The DeepSeek application is seen as a competitor to Copilot — Microsoft’s own AI solution for internet search.
