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China is threatening to retaliate after the Trump administration ordered federal agencies to strip Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s products out of their systems over national security concerns.

Getting into it: The Department of Homeland Security published the order Monday, though it was issued in July. It requires civilian agencies like the Treasury, State and Justice departments to remove DeepSeek’s AI products, along with any third-party tools built on its technology, and bans them from buying DeepSeek products in the future. DHS said DeepSeek’s models “present multiple threat vectors,” warning that because DeepSeek’s servers sit in China, and Chinese law gives the government “extensive authority” over company infrastructure there, using its tools could send sensitive US government data to Beijing.

The order also said the models could track users and contain malware or security flaws. Separate orders were issued Friday covering the Pentagon and intelligence agencies. The Commerce Department, Navy, NASA and states including Texas, New York and Virginia had already restricted DeepSeek, as had France, Australia and Italy. US agencies have also accused DeepSeek and other Chinese AI companies of copying the capabilities of American AI models through “distillation,” claims echoed by OpenAI and Anthropic and denied by Beijing.

In a statement, China’s Ministry of Commerce said, “China will closely monitor the situation and take all necessary measures to firmly defend its legitimate rights and interests.” It also accused the US of trying to suppress China “under the guise of national security” and ignoring what Xi Jinping and Trump had agreed to.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning went further, saying China “consistently opposes overstretching the concept of national security and politicizing tech and trade issues.”

This all comes after DeepSeek rattled Silicon Valley in January 2025, when it released a model rivaling top US systems at a fraction of the cost, and its free, open-source models have been picked up all over the world, including by US companies.