Texas Governor Bans DeepSeek, RedNote on State Devices Amid Security Concerns

California: Texas Governor Greg Abbott has banned the Chinese AI startup DeepSeek and the social media apps Xiaohongshu (RedNote) and Lemon8 from all state-issued devices. This makes Texas the first state to take such action against DeepSeek, which recently gained attention for emerging as a strong competitor to OpenAI’s widely used chatbot.

On this banned Governor Abbott stated “Texas will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate our state’s critical infrastructure through data-harvesting AI and social media apps”. However, officials did not say anything more about the matter.

DeepSeek has become one of the world’s prominent AI makers, making ripples in the tech community. At the same time, Xiaohongshu and Lemon8 are taking ground in the United States, replacing TikTok as a preferred choice for several users following the January ban imposed on the app. The popularity of Xiaohongshu has seen an upsurge as its active users cross 300 million across the globe.

This move further increases the number of states and federal agencies that have already barred TikTok from being accessed on government-issued devices because of security issues related to Chinese-owned apps.

Moreover, with debates about political and legal matters for Chinese-owned apps, the future of platforms such as DeepSeek, Xiaohongshu, and Lemon8 is unclear. It marks an essential step in the continued scrutiny of Chinese-backed technologies in the United States.

Disclaimer: The news articles published on Growing Pro Technologies are based on reports from reputable third-party sources and are not original reporting by Growing Pro Technologies. While we strive to ensure accuracy and integrity, we cannot guarantee the completeness or timeliness of the information provided. 

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