Several Western governments are actively debating whether to ban DeepSeek. Italy has already done it. The US has introduced legislation targeting Chinese AI apps. The argument for banning is simple: Chinese law requires companies to cooperate with state intelligence agencies, making any Chinese AI app a potential surveillance tool. The argument against banning is that it sets a dangerous precedent of technological nationalism, that open-source models cannot really be banned, and that the real solution is better data privacy laws that apply to all AI companies regardless of origin. Should DeepSeek be banned in the West?
