Jan 29 (Reuters) - Microsoft ( MSFT ) has made Chinese

startup DeepSeek's R1 artificial intelligence model available on

its Azure cloud computing platform and GitHub tool for

developers, the U.S. company said on Wednesday.

The AI model will be available in the model catalog on the

platforms and will join more than 1,800 models that Microsoft ( MSFT ) is

offering.

DeepSeek last week

launched a free AI assistant

that it says uses less data at a fraction of the cost of

incumbent services. By Monday, the assistant had overtaken U.S.

rival ChatGPT in downloads from Apple's App Store, sparking

panic among tech stock investors.

The move comes as Microsoft ( MSFT ) has been looking to reduce

its dependence on ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has been

working to add internal and third-party AI models to power its

flagship AI product Microsoft ( MSFT ) 365 Copilot,

Reuters reported

last month.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) also said customers would soon be able to run

the R1 model locally on their Copilot+ PCs, a move that could

potentially ease privacy and data-sharing concerns over the use

of the model.

DeepSeek has said it stores user information in servers

in China, which could be a sticking point in its U.S. adoption.

Meanwhile, Microsoft ( MSFT ) and OpenAI are probing if data

output from OpenAI's technology was obtained in an unauthorized

manner by a group linked to DeepSeek, Bloomberg News

reported

on Tuesday.

DeepSeek bursting onto the AI scene has prompted rivals

to respond, with OpenAI boss Sam Altman saying the company will

"pull up some releases" - following which it

released

a tailored version of ChatGPT for U.S. government agencies

on Tuesday.

China's Alibaba ( BABA ) also released a new version of

its Qwen 2.5 AI model on Wednesday, an unusual timing,

considering it marked the first day of the Lunar New Year.