The Trump administration is considering banning the Chinese AI chatbot DeepSeek from U.S. government devices due to national security concerns, according to a source familiar with the situation. U.S. officials have expressed apprehension over DeepSeek's data management practices, with the company claiming data storage in servers located in China, as reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Additionally, the administration is exploring options such as prohibiting the chatbot from app stores and imposing restrictions on U.S.-based cloud service providers offering DeepSeek's AI models to customers, although discussions are still in the early stages.

DeepSeek's budget-friendly AI models caused a disturbance in global equity markets in January, raising concerns among investors about potential competition with existing AI market leaders.

On Thursday, a coalition of 21 state attorneys general called on Congress to pass a legislation barring government devices from downloading and using DeepSeek's artificial intelligence software.

The White House has not yet responded to requests for comment.