DeepSeek has become a popular open-weight LLM, but developers often overlook the legal and regulatory layers. This signal breaks down the key points: the model's license permits commercial use with attribution, but redistribution and derivative works have specific conditions. Additionally, deploying DeepSeek in China requires compliance with local AI regulations, including content safety reviews and data localization. For global teams, understanding these constraints is critical to avoid legal pitfalls. The post also highlights the difference between open-source code and model weights, which affects how you can modify and resell the model. While not a technical tutorial, it serves as a practical checklist for integration planning. We recommend reviewing the official license text and consulting legal counsel for enterprise use.
A practical overview of DeepSeek's commercial license, open-source terms, and China compliance requirements for AI deployment.