Quick answer
Public detail on how DeepSeek chooses brands is limited. Build a clear, consistent public footprint, track results with search on and off separately, test in the languages your customers use, and record whether an answer came from the official app or a third party service.
Key takeaways
- Public detail on how DeepSeek chooses brands is limited. Build a clear, consistent public footprint, track results with search on and off separately, test in the languages your customers use, and record whether an answer came from the official app or a third party service.
- Measure before and after with the same prompts.
- There is no way to guarantee a mention, so aim for clear facts and credible sources.
What influences whether DeepSeek names a brand?
- The size and clarity of your public web footprint
- Whether the person switched search on
- Language of the prompt
- Whether the answer came from the official app or another service
A step by step playbook
- 1Strengthen the public description of your brand on your site and trusted third party pages.
- 2Test prompts with search off, then with search on.
- 3Test in each language your customers use.
- 4Record the conditions with every observation.
- 5Track a fixed prompt set over time.
Prompts to test
- Compare the best [category] options
- Which [category] would you recommend for [need]?
- What is [your brand] known for?
Keep in mind
Be honest about what is known
Public detail on how DeepSeek chooses which brands to name is limited, and any confident playbook would be guesswork. What can be said is limited to what is observable: the answers you get, the conditions you got them under, and how they change over time. That is enough to build a useful measurement, and it is the right foundation for any action.
Where DeepSeek sits in the market
Similarweb's August 2026 estimate is that DeepSeek accounts for about 3.4% of tracked generative AI website traffic, down from 4.0% a year earlier. That is a meaningful share, and larger than Copilot's or Perplexity's on this measure. Its audience and the way it is accessed vary by country, so what it means for you depends on where your customers are.
Share of generative AI website traffic
Similarweb, worldwide website visits, August 2026 against August 2025. Website traffic only. It leaves out mobile apps and system-level entry points such as Android or Windows, so it understates assistants that live inside other products.
- ChatGPT55.5%vs 73.3%
- Gemini25.6%vs 12.9%
- Claude9.3%vs 1.9%
- DeepSeek3.4%vs 4%
- Grok2.4%vs 2.6%
- Copilot1.6%vs 2%
- Perplexity0.9%vs 2%
August 2026August 2025
Control the conditions of every test
| Condition | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Official app or a third-party service | Third parties may run the same model with different settings or search |
| Search on or off | Answers with and without live retrieval behave differently and should never share a rate |
| Language of the prompt | Results can differ noticeably by language |
| Date and location | Models and retrieval change, and location can affect results |
What you can do that does not depend on guesswork
- Build a clear, consistent public description of the brand on your site and on trusted third-party pages.
- Test the same prompts with search off and then on, and compare.
- Test in every language your customers use.
- Track a fixed prompt set over time so any change stands out against your own baseline.
Do not blend search on and off
A note on availability
Availability of a consumer AI product can differ by country and change over time, and rules for its use can change. If your customers are in a market where a product is restricted, weigh it accordingly, and check current, reliable information rather than assumption.
Is DeepSeek banned in India?
Not for the public. A government advisory told employees to avoid such tools on official devices, which is different from a nationwide ban.
Is DeepSeek banned in India?
Rules and availability can change and differ by context. Check current, reliable information for your situation, and use our India hub for what has been published about usage.
Should I prioritise DeepSeek?
Weigh it by where your customers are and which assistants they use. Measure first, then decide how much effort it deserves.
Sources
- 1. Similarweb: Generative AI landscape 2026 (AI Search Stats) (Covers June 2025 to May 2026)
Cite this page
BrandWater AI Research. (2026, 21 September 2026). How to get your brand mentioned in DeepSeek. https://brandwaterai.in/guides/get-mentioned-in-deepseek
How we work
Figures are dated and linked to their sources. Where none exist we say so. Read our methodology and AI transparency pages.