Chinese tech companies shrugged off foreign scrutiny of upstart chatbot maker DeepSeek, telling AFP on Friday they were confident the country's tech startups would make more gains in the global artificial intelligence race.

Hangzhou-based DeepSeek's R1 chatbot stunned industry insiders and became a hero of China's AI sector last month with its ability to match the functions of its Western competitors at a fraction of the cost.

But concerns about the app's handling of users' personal data have pushed countries including South Korea, Italy, Australia and some US states to ban or restrict its use.

"In the past few years, China has faced all sorts of restrictions (especially) from the US," Sun Dasheng, an employee of AI........

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