US orders federal agencies to remove DeepSeek AI from systems
21 October 2026 · filed under 3309b6ce15f4
The U.S. government has directed federal civilian agencies to remove DeepSeek products, along with any third-party services built on the Chinese AI company’s technology, from their systems, TechCrunch reported on October 20. The order cites national security concerns as justification for the removal.
DeepSeek, founded in China, drew international attention earlier for releasing AI models that reportedly rivaled U.S. systems at a fraction of the development cost. That emergence prompted scrutiny from American officials and technology firms over data handling, model provenance, and potential links to the Chinese state.
The directive issued this week applies specifically to civilian federal agencies rather than the entire government, and it extends beyond DeepSeek’s own products to cover services built using its underlying technology, broadening its practical reach. TechCrunch’s report did not specify an enforcement timeline or detail which agencies have confirmed compliance.
The move follows a pattern of U.S. government action against Chinese-origin technology platforms on security grounds, extending a posture previously applied to other software and hardware providers into the realm of artificial intelligence models specifically. The order underscores how AI tools, once adopted inside government systems, have become subject to the same supply chain and security review processes applied to other foreign technology products. TechCrunch’s report did not include additional comment from DeepSeek or from U.S. agencies named in the order.