- An internal US Navy email told service members not to use the Chinese AI app DeepSeek.
- The memo is a reminder of the Navy policy against using open-source AI for official work.
- DeepSeek recently surpassed ChatGPT as the Apple App Store's top free app.
The US Navy told some service members they shouldn't use AI apps, including the Chinese startup DeepSeek's app.
A Navy memo sent last week said DeepSeek's artificial intelligence should not be used "in any capacity" because of "potential security and ethical concerns associated with the model's origin and usage."
News of the memo was earlier reported by CNBC.
A Navy official told Business Insider that the email was distributed to fewer than 40 personnel and notified them that DeepSeek fit into 2023 Department of the Navy guidance telling service members not to use AI tools. Various open-source AI tools are publicly available, including popular ones like OpenAI's ChatGPT.
The 2023 guidance said that using commercial generative AI models posed a "unique security risk" with the potential for "data compromise."
The official said the email was intended for a smaller audience within the Navy but was circulated more broadly. They called it "the forwarding effect."
A Navy spokesperson said the memo aimed to remind service members of its AI policy and was not part of a new ban.
"The internal correspondence was a reminder to colleagues of standing Navy guidance against the use of any publicly accessible, open-source AI programs or systems for official work," the spokesperson said. "DeepSeek was mentioned as the most recent example of how the standing guidance applies."
DeepSeek has made headlines as an apparently low-cost alternative to American-made AI tools like ChatGPT and briefly sparked a sudden, sharp downturn in US markets this week. The Chinese AI company was started in 2023, and its app recently surpassed ChatGPT as the Apple App Store's top free app and remained in the No. 1 spot as of Wednesday.
