After threatening AI export bans, China allows DeepSeek to keep selling

China has allowed certain AI technology companies to continue exporting their products despite initial threats of export bans. The decision came after Beijing revised its Catalogue of Technologies Prohibited and Restricted from Export, adding 23 technologies related to large-scale models, intelligent agents, computing clusters, and information processing.

Exempt from the restrictions are technologies issued under open source licenses. Companies DeepSeek and MiniMax were granted authorization to continue exports, posing a challenge to American AI vendors. The expanded catalogue also gives Beijing the power to halt exports of AI technology considered vital for national security, such as bug-finders or military-use tools.

The US has also imposed on-again, off-again bans on advanced GPU sales to China. Meanwhile, in Australia, datacenter operator Firmus canceled its initial public offering amid investor skepticism over optimistic revenue predictions and a founder's history of insider trading. Similarly, NEXTDC announced reduced revenue forecasts due to a power supplier's suspension of work, citing community opposition.

The Australian government aims to attract AI investments by mandating renewable energy use and grid enhancements for new datacenter builds. Meanwhile, Grab, a Singapore-based "super-app" offering various services, suggests that data collected through its GrabMart grocery app could aid disease outbreak detection. The company proposes analyzing customer behavior on its app, focusing on eligible product categories, geographic areas, and aggregate time windows, without exposing raw transactions or personal information.

Grab emphasizes that data cannot detect diseases alone and must be government-approved for specific health concerns, limited in time, and not used for personalized medical advice, insurance decisions, or medicine search rankings.