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The license grants any person who obtains a copy of the software the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and sell copies, free of charge and without restriction, subject to the attribution condition.
This analysis describes what DeepSeek's agreement states, permits, or reserves. It does not constitute a legal determination about enforceability. Regulatory applicability and practical outcomes may vary by jurisdiction, enforcement context, and individual circumstances. Read our methodology
This provision establishes the broadest permissible grant under the MIT License framework, including explicit commercial use and sublicensing rights, which means organizations may integrate, redistribute, and monetize DeepSeek-R1 without licensing fees or further approval from DeepSeek.
Under this clause, any individual or organization may use DeepSeek-R1 for any purpose, including commercial deployment, without payment or restriction, provided the copyright notice condition is met.
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"Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:Excerpt from DeepSeek's Model License
1. REGULATORY LANDSCAPE: The permission grant itself does not engage data protection or consumer protection regulations directly. However, the EU AI Act may impose obligations on organizations that deploy the model in high-risk AI system contexts within the EU, independent of what this license authorizes. The FTC's authority over unfair or deceptive practices may apply to commercial products built on the model. 2. GOVERNANCE EXPOSURE: Low. The permission grant is standard MIT License language and creates no unusual compliance exposure on its own. The primary governance consideration is ensuring downstream deployment obligations are independently assessed. 3. JURISDICTION FLAGS: EU deployers should evaluate EU AI Act classification requirements. The license itself does not restrict or enable any particular jurisdiction's regulatory requirements; those attach to the deployer's use case. 4. CONTRACT AND VENDOR IMPLICATIONS: Procurement teams incorporating DeepSeek-R1 into commercial products should confirm that the sublicensing right is sufficient for their intended distribution model and that no additional contractual relationship with DeepSeek is required or available. 5. COMPLIANCE CONSIDERATIONS: Organizations should document their intended use scope at the time of adoption, particularly if deploying in regulated sectors such as healthcare, finance, or critical infrastructure, where AI-specific regulatory obligations may apply regardless of the permissive license terms.
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This provision establishes the broadest permissible grant under the MIT License framework, including explicit commercial use and sublicensing rights, which means organizations may integrate, redistribute, and monetize DeepSeek-R1 without licensing fees or further approval from DeepSeek.
Under this clause, any individual or organization may use DeepSeek-R1 for any purpose, including commercial deployment, without payment or restriction, provided the copyright notice condition is met.
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