Passports of key Deepseek employees seized as Chinese regulations tighten

Passports of key Deepseek employees seized as Chinese regulations tighten

Last Updated Mar - 18 - 2025, 02:01 PM | Source : Fela News

Chinese Ai technology Deepseek has seized the passports of its employees in order to prevent them from travelling abroad and sharing trade secrets with other ri

The passports of multiple employees in China’s Deepseek have been confiscated to prevent them from travelling outside the country and by extension spilling trade secrets and other sensitive information about the company. The government has reportedly tightened regulations to prevent key employees from deserting the company as well. 

Deepseek’s parent company, High-Flyer, a hedge fund, is holding onto the passports of the employees especially those in research and development to ensure they cannot leave without approval. 

The Information report further claimed the Chinese government now plays a crucial role in determining who can invest in the company  Deepseek, which gained global attention and rose significantly even to some extent winning against OpenAI, with its launch of open source reasoning model - R1. 

Deepseek’s AI technology has faced scrutiny for following China’s censorship rules as well. Earlier, The Guardian reported that the model avoids discussing sensitive topics like the Tiananmen Square massacre, the Hong Kong Umbrella Revolution, and other government and politically sensitive issues. 

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