U.S. CommerceDepartment bureaus warned staffers in recent weeks that the Chinese artificial intelligence model DeepSeek is banned on their government equipment, according to a message read by two people familiar with the subject.
TakeAway Points:
- The U.S. Commerce department notified employees that the Chinese artificial intelligence model DeepSeek is prohibited on their federal equipment.
- Research firm Newzoo stated on Monday that videogame consoles will probably be the market’s largest growth engine until 2027, citing high anticipated sales for Take-Two’s upcoming “Grand Theft Auto VI” and Nintendo’s next-generation Switch.
U.S commerce department bans DeepSeek
“To help keep Department of Commerce information systems safe, access to the new Chinese-based AI DeepSeek is broadly prohibited on all GFE,” said one mass email to staffers about their government-furnished equipment.
“Do not download,view, or access any applications, desktop apps or websites related to DeepSeek.”
DeepSeek’s low-cost AI models sparked a major selloff in global equity markets in January, as investors worried about the threat to the United States’ lead in AI.
U.S. officials and members of Congress have expressed concerns about the threat of DeepSeek to data privacy and sensitive government information.
Congressmen Josh Gottheimer and Darin LaHood, members of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, in February introduced legislation to ban DeepSeek on government devices. Earlier this month, they sent letters to U.S. governors urging them to ban the Chinese AI app on government-issued equipment.
“By using DeepSeek, users are unknowingly sharing highly sensitive, proprietary information with the CCP — such as contracts, documents, and financial records,” the lawmakers wrote in a March 3 letter, referring to the Chinese Communist Party. “In the wrong hands, this data is an enormous asset to the CCP, a known foreign adversary.”
Numerous states have banned the model from government devices, including Virginia, Texas and New York, and a coalition of 21 state attorneys general has urged Congress to pass legislation.
Consoles to power videogame market growth until 2027 on ‘GTA VI’, Switch boost Videogame consoles are likely to be the biggest growth driver in the market until 2027, research firm Newzoo said on Monday, citing strong expected sales for Take-Two’s upcoming “Grand Theft Auto VI” and the next-generation Switch from Nintendo.
Videogame industry
The videogame industry has been recovering at a sluggish pace following a post-pandemic slump, as concerns over economic uncertainties and still-high inflation dented consumer spending on consoles and games.
That led to mass layoffs, studio closures and project cancellations across the industry in 2024. But analysts expect the launch of the new Switch console and “GTA VI”, likely to be released in the summer and fall of this year, respectively, to spur a rebound.
Take-Two Interactive’s predecessor to “GTA VI” is one of the most profitable videogames in the world and has sold more than 210 million copies as of December2024. Nintendo last month cut full-year sales forecast for its older console ahead of its successor’s launch.
Observations
The power of major console releases such as Sony’s “Spider-Man” and “God of War” is driving players to spend more time on their consoles, Emmanuel Rosier, director of market analysis at Newzoo, said.
“And these kinds of AAA or AAAA releases have less impact on PC,” he added, attributing the trend to PC gamers’ preference for older titles.
From 2024 to 2027, console software revenue is expected to grow 7%, outpacing PC’s rise of 2.6%, according to the report.
Console revenue in 2027 is expected to account for more than 56% of the total PC and console software revenue of $92.7 billion.
Total playtime grew 6% last year, with the fourth quarter seeing the highest quarterly playtime owing to the launch of Activision Blizzard’s new “Call of Duty” title.
