Gemini, ChatGPT rival dealt big blow in key market

Imagine if today's Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools existed back when we were in school. Some of us would've saved so much money trying to bribe the smart kid in the classroom from letting us copy their homework.

Nonetheless, many of us graduated without relying on an AI chatbot for answers, and we have critical thinking to thank for that.

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AI has become almost like humans' second and more developed brain by making daily tasks easier through advanced problem-solving, research, and decision-making capabilities.

This invention has allowed people to complete tasks faster and more efficiently than ever. Although it has been a blessing, this tool has a dangerous side that many conveniently ignore.

Germany seeks to ban a popular AI chatbot from app stores.

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A concerning discovery about DeepSeek emerges

In January, a new AI chatbot emerged, ready to take over major rivals to become humans' new right-hand man.

DeepSeek is a Chinese AI startup created more cost-effectively than rivals ChatGPT and Gemini, yet offering better performance and accessibility.

However, a recent revelation has created huge privacy concerns.

U.S. officials revealed that DeepSeek is helping Chinese military and intelligence operations, allegedly by providing U.S. users' information and statistics to the country's government, as first reported by Reuters in June.

The officials also claim that DeepSeek may have heavily used U.S. technology and employed workarounds to access its AI chips.

Since 2022, the U.S. has imposed export restrictions on the chips over concerns that China might use them to advance its military capabilities or gain an edge in the AI race.

Now, another country has expressed similar concerns, seeking drastic actions to move DeepSeek out of its citizens' reach.

Germany seeks to banish an AI tool from app stores

Germany has reported DeepSeek as illegal content to Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOGL) , aiming to eliminate it from the companies' app stores due to concerns about data privacy, said Data Protection Commissioner Meike Kamp.

And Germany may have grounds for its request, since DeepSeek has yet to prove that user data is protected in China at a level equivalent to European Union (EU) standards.

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The EU's General Data Protection Regulation law prevents companies from sharing data outside the EU, unless the respective foreign country's standards meet the EU's requirements.

If the proceedings go as planned, Apple and Google will review the claims and decide whether to ban the DeepSeek app from their app stores.

Google is Germany's most commonly used search engine, while ChatGPT is the most widely used large language model. However, DeepSeek is much newer and has quickly gained popularity among AI users.