AUSTRALIA: On Tuesday, Jan 28, Australia’s science minister, Ed Husic, voiced concerns about privacy risks linked to China’s new AI chatbot, DeepSeek, and advised users to think carefully before downloading it.
DeepSeek, developed by a Chinese tech startup, has been making waves since its release last week. It has quickly climbed to the top of app download charts, surpassing competitors like ChatGPT and impressed users and industry experts.
Meta has even reportedly set up four “war rooms” of engineers to figure out how the Chinese AI startup launched its open-source AI chatbot R1 at a fraction of the cost.
However, Mr Husic cautioned against adopting the technology without understanding its implications.
Speaking to the national broadcaster ABC, he said, “There are a lot of questions that will need to be answered in time on quality, consumer preferences, data and privacy management.”
He added, “I would be very careful about that. These types of issues need to be weighed up carefully.”
He pointed out that Chinese companies sometimes approach privacy and data management differently from Western firms, as reported by AFP.
However, he praised the Chinese as very good at developing products that work well, explaining that “the market is accustomed to their approaches on data and privacy.”
He added that while these practices may work in China, they might not align with consumer expectations elsewhere, adding that “the question is whether those products will be embraced in the same way.”
Australia has previously taken steps to limit the influence of Chinese technology. In 2018, due to national security concerns, the government banned Chinese telecom giant Huawei from its 5G network.
Mr Husic stressed, “I think you have to be careful,” stating he’s just being “completely frank and direct.” /TISG
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