Today, State Treasurer Larry Pack announced the use of Chinese artificial intelligence (AI), such as DeepSeek, will be banned on all West Virginia Treasury issued devices. In addition, AliPay, a Chinese based wallet system, and Kasperksy are also being banned from devices. This an update in policy concerning applications controlled by foreign adversaries. Platforms such as TikTok and WeChat were previously banned from usage. 

“Every day, agents of China are working to steal U.S. trade secrets to be weaponized against the United States. These bad actors continue to put our country’s security at risk and we cannot wait back and let the worst-case scenario happen,” Treasurer Pack said. “We must continue to take precautionary action against these actors to protect American interests.”

This is the second time Treasurer Pack has acted against foreign adversaries. The Board of Treasury Investments (BTI) approved a Prohibited Foreign Investments Policy during its quarterly meeting in March. The policy prevents direct investments from companies affiliated with the government of the People’s Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese military, or any instrumentality or combination thereof.

“When I become the Chairman of the IMB we will take further action limiting our potential involvement with the Chinese assets. There’s no reason for us to invest in a country that is working against our interests. Divesting in China means investing more dollars in our great state,” Treasurer Pack said.

Treasurer Pack also plans on proposing a similar policy as Chairman of the West Virginia Investment Management Board (IMB) later this year to ensure the state’s long-term investments and pensions of the citizens of West Virginia are not invested with the People’s Republic of China.