US Raises Global Alert Over Alleged AI IP Theft as DeepSeek, Moonshot AI Face Scrutiny

The United States State Department has issued a global alert against several companies, including the popular Chinese AI startup ‘DeepSeek’, over allegations of intellectual property (IP) theft from American artificial intelligence research laboratories. The information was reported on Saturday, citing a confidential diplomatic cable obtained by Reuters.

Core Allegation: “AI Distillation”
According to the United States, Chinese firms such as DeepSeek, Moonshot AI, and MiniMax are allegedly using a technique known as “distillation” to steal American technology. Through this method, outputs from expensive and powerful US models such as those developed by OpenAI are used to build highly capable AI models at significantly lower cost.

The US State Department warned in its communication that although models developed through this process may appear similar to the original systems, their performance is not fully equivalent. The biggest concern, it added, is that such models lack proper security protocols and often remove mechanisms that ensure truthfulness and neutrality.

OpenAI’s Earlier Warning
In February this year, OpenAI had warned US lawmakers that DeepSeek was attempting to create replicas of its ChatGPT model. DeepSeek, however, rejected these allegations, stating earlier that its models were developed using publicly available internet data and that it did not intentionally use any OpenAI data.

China’s Response and New Model
The Chinese Embassy in Washington described the allegations as “baseless,” stating that they are an intentional attempt to hinder the progress of China’s AI industry. Amid this tense backdrop, DeepSeek on Friday unveiled a preview of its new and highly anticipated “V-4” model. Notably, the model is optimized to run on Huawei chips, demonstrating China’s push for self-reliance in the AI sector.

It is worth noting that US President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Beijing in the coming weeks. Observers believe that these major allegations, emerging just ahead of the visit, could further escalate the ongoing technological rivalry between the two superpowers.

DBTech/BMT/OR