Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) has issued an order banning state officials from using Chinese-owned technology, including the artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek and the short-form video app RedNote, on government devices.
“Texas will not allow the Chinese Communist Party to infiltrate our state’s critical infrastructure through data-harvesting AI and social media apps,” Abbott stated in a press release Friday. “Texas will continue to protect and defend our state from hostile foreign actors.”
The ban comes amid growing concerns over Chinese-owned technology, particularly following the U.S. government’s short-lived ban on TikTok. In recent weeks, DeepSeek has gained traction as a powerful AI tool, while RedNote has surged in popularity, ranking among the top free downloads in Apple’s U.S. app store when TikTok’s legal challenges escalated.
Abbott emphasized the need to safeguard Texas’ critical infrastructure from potential foreign espionage. “State agencies and employees responsible for handling critical infrastructure, intellectual property, and personal information must be protected from malicious espionage operations by the Chinese Communist Party,” he said.
President Donald Trump also weighed in on the rise of DeepSeek, calling it a “wakeup call” for American industries. “The release of DeepSeek, AI from a Chinese company, should be a wake-up call for our industries that we need to be laser-focused on competing to win,” Trump told House Republicans at their annual policy retreat.
Meanwhile, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt described DeepSeek’s rapid ascent as a “turning point” in the global AI race, warning that the company’s ability to compete with major U.S. tech firms despite fewer resources signals increased competition. However, some tech leaders have downplayed DeepSeek’s significance—OpenAI’s Sam Altman called its impact “wildly overstated,” while Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg expressed confidence in his own company’s AI advancements.
The Texas ban also extends to several other Chinese-owned apps, including Webull, Tiger Brokers, Moomoo, and Lemon8. Abbott previously barred TikTok from government devices in 2022, citing similar security concerns.
