DeepSeek vs ChatGPT: which is right for your business?
For most Australian businesses, ChatGPT is the appropriate choice for everyday staff use, because it offers business plans with admin controls, training exclusions and Australian storage at rest for Enterprise customers. DeepSeek's hosted app and API store personal data in China, and Australian Government entities have been directed to remove DeepSeek products from government systems and devices. DeepSeek's real value is its open-weight models, which developers can self-host or use through cloud platforms in Australian regions, keeping data away from DeepSeek's own services.
Last reviewed October 2026
Side-by-side comparison
| DeepSeek | ChatGPT | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A family of open-weight models with a free chat app and a low-cost API run by DeepSeek in China. | A commercial assistant and API from OpenAI with consumer and business plans. |
| Best at | Self-hosted or cloud-hosted reasoning and coding where you control the infrastructure. | Everyday business work: writing, analysis, images, research and custom GPTs. |
| Data location | DeepSeek's privacy policy says it stores personal data in China; self-hosted weights keep data wherever you run them. | US-based by default; Enterprise, Edu and API customers can store data at rest in Australia. |
| Government position | PSPF Direction 001-2025 requires Australian Government entities to remove DeepSeek products from government systems and devices. | No equivalent direction; agencies assess it under their usual ICT and security frameworks. |
| Team and admin controls | No business plan with admin controls for the hosted app. | Business and Enterprise add SSO, admin controls and a data processing agreement. |
| Open weights | Model weights published under the MIT licence for download, fine-tuning and commercial use. | Main ChatGPT models are closed; OpenAI has released some separate open-weight models. |
| Cloud availability | Offered as a managed model on AWS Bedrock, including the Sydney region, and other platforms. | OpenAI API directly and through Microsoft Azure. |
| Content limits | Some outputs reflect restrictions on politically sensitive topics. | Follows OpenAI's usage policies; no comparable political restrictions. |
Choose DeepSeek if…
- →Developers want an open-weight model to self-host on infrastructure you control
- →You want to fine-tune a model on your own data without sending it to a vendor
- →You use DeepSeek models through AWS Bedrock in Sydney for a contained internal application
Choose ChatGPT if…
- →Staff need a general assistant for everyday work with business-grade privacy controls
- →You work with government, or with clients whose contracts restrict Chinese-hosted services
- →You need admin controls, SSO and a data processing agreement
- →You want data stored at rest in Australia through an Enterprise agreement
For Australian businesses
On 4 February 2025 the Department of Home Affairs issued PSPF Direction 001-2025, requiring non-corporate Commonwealth entities to prevent use of DeepSeek products, applications and web services and remove them from government systems and devices, after a security assessment. The direction does not ban private use, but businesses should weigh it, along with the Privacy Act 1988 requirements on cross-border disclosure in APP 8. Self-hosting the weights or using Bedrock in Sydney avoids sending data to DeepSeek's own servers.
Our verdict
For staff-facing use, ChatGPT is the clear choice for Australian organisations: it has business plans, admin controls, training exclusions and an Australian storage option, while DeepSeek's hosted app stores data in China and is barred from government devices. DeepSeek is still worth considering for developers, because its open-weight models can run on your own servers or through AWS Bedrock in Sydney, where data never reaches DeepSeek. Do not allow the DeepSeek app on work devices that handle client or government information.
Full reviews
DeepSeek
Free plan + paidOpen Model
A family of large language models from Chinese AI lab DeepSeek, covering general chat and step-by-step reasoning. The model weights are published under the permissive MIT licence, so they can be downloaded and self-hosted, and DeepSeek also runs its own chat app and paid API.
Best for: Engineering teams able to self-host open models on their own GPUs
DeepSeek review →ChatGPT (OpenAI)
Free plan + paidGeneral Assistant
OpenAI's general-purpose AI assistant. It handles writing, coding, file and image analysis, data analysis and web research through a chat interface, with an API for building it into your own systems.
Best for: Small and mid-sized teams wanting one general assistant for everyday writing and analysis
ChatGPT review →
Frequently asked questions
Is DeepSeek banned in Australia?
Not for the public or private businesses. In February 2025, PSPF Direction 001-2025 required Australian Government entities to prevent use of DeepSeek products and remove them from government systems and devices. Businesses that work with government, or handle sensitive information, should check client and contract requirements before allowing it.
Is it safe to use DeepSeek's open-weight models?
The open weights are different from DeepSeek's hosted app. When you run the weights on your own infrastructure, or use a managed version on AWS Bedrock in Sydney, your prompts do not go to DeepSeek. You still need to test outputs, apply your own security controls and check your organisation's policy, as some clients restrict DeepSeek models outright.
Why choose ChatGPT over DeepSeek for business use?
ChatGPT offers business plans with SSO, admin controls, a data processing agreement and training exclusions, and Enterprise customers can store data at rest in Australia. DeepSeek's hosted app has no comparable business controls and stores personal data in China, which raises Privacy Act 1988 cross-border disclosure questions.
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Still deciding?
AI Lab Australia can trial both tools against your own documents and workflows, and set up the one that fits with the right privacy controls.