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Czech Government Bans Use of Chinese AI Startup DeepSeek in Public Administration

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The Czech government has prohibited all use of services from Chinese AI startup DeepSeek within the country’s public administration, citing data security concerns, Prime Minister Petr Fiala announced on Wednesday. The decision aligns with similar restrictions imposed by Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands due to fears about data protection.

Fiala explained that DeepSeek, as a Chinese company, is legally required to cooperate with Chinese authorities, potentially granting Beijing access to data stored on the company’s servers in China. This risk prompted the government to ban DeepSeek’s AI products, applications, websites, and web services from official public use.

DeepSeek and the Chinese embassy in Prague have not yet responded to requests for comment. The startup made headlines earlier this year by claiming to offer a low-cost AI model competing with U.S. firms like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. However, concerns have grown in both the U.S. and Europe over DeepSeek’s handling of personal data.

DeepSeek’s privacy policy indicates that it stores user data, including AI requests and uploaded files, on Chinese servers, intensifying worries about user privacy and data security.

OpenAI Appeals Court Order on Data Preservation in NYT Copyright Lawsuit

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OpenAI has appealed a recent court order requiring it to indefinitely preserve ChatGPT output data in an ongoing copyright lawsuit filed by The New York Times (NYT). The company argues that the order conflicts with its obligations to protect user privacy.

Last month, the court mandated that OpenAI must preserve and segregate all output log data, after the NYT requested this as part of the discovery process. In response, OpenAI filed a motion on June 3 to vacate the data preservation order, according to a court filing.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman publicly criticized the order on X, stating, “We will fight any demand that compromises our users’ privacy; this is a core principle.” He added that the NYT’s request was “inappropriate” and “sets a bad precedent.”

The lawsuit, originally filed in 2023, accuses OpenAI and its partner Microsoft of using millions of NYT articles without permission to train their language models, including the one powering ChatGPT. The Times alleges that this constitutes copyright infringement.

U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein previously ruled that the Times had made a plausible case that OpenAI and Microsoft may have induced users to infringe on its copyrights. In an earlier opinion, the judge allowed the case to proceed, citing numerous and widely publicized instances where ChatGPT reproduced substantial portions of Times content.

While the NYT declined to comment on OpenAI’s appeal, the case remains one of the highest-profile legal challenges facing generative AI companies over training data use and copyright infringement claims.

Grupo Werthein Launches $40 Million Generative AI Company ‘Illumia’ to Enhance Humanized Customer Interaction

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Grupo Werthein, the Argentina-based investment conglomerate, has launched a new generative AI company named Illumia, backed by an initial $40 million investment, the company announced on Wednesday. Illumia will focus on humanized AI solutions for sales, customer service, and business communication, blending multiple AI platforms to simulate human-like conversation.

“We aim to use generative artificial intelligence with digital assistants that can converse the same way humans can,” said Daniel Figueirido, CEO of Illumia, in a statement to Reuters.

The company’s AI service leverages existing AI tools and proprietary technologies to deliver solutions aimed at personalizing interactions between companies and their customers. It has already begun offering services to Werthein-controlled firms and third-party clients in Latin America.

Why It Matters

The investment signals a strategic push by Latin American firms to lead in AI personalization and customer engagement technologies, an area increasingly seen as critical for competitiveness in sectors such as telecom, media, and e-commerce.

“The key to the kingdom with this kind of investment is how do I combine each of these different platforms and technologies,” Figueirido said.

Illumia’s development comes at a time of both high enthusiasm and caution toward generative AI in the region. A recent Reuters study found that while 56% of Latin American respondents expressed excitement about AI, 50% voiced concerns over privacy and data confidentiality.

What’s Next

Figueirido envisions expanding Illumia’s reach beyond Latin America, scaling services across industries and geographies. While early clients have included firms within the Werthein portfolio — which includes DirecTV Latin America and Sky Brazil — the company is now positioning itself for regional and international growth.

Grupo Werthein’s move into AI reflects a broader trend among legacy conglomerates investing in next-gen technologies, with Illumia poised to play a leading role in AI-driven customer engagement and digital transformation in Latin America and beyond.