‘Let’s Speak about something Else’: Chinese Chatbot DeepSeek Criticized for Censorship On Tiananmen Square, Taiwan

The newly popular Chinese chatbot, DeepSeek, has actually been criticized for censoring historical occasions and info related to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

DeepSeek has surged in popularity, climbing to No. 1 on the Apple App Store’s Top Charts for Productivity, exceeding the U.S.-based chatbot ChatGPT.

The app supposedly cost less than $6 million to establish, significantly less than the billions invested in its competitors.

The app’s appeal and low-cost cost have challenged the commonly held presumption of US dominance in AI.

However, not everybody is convinced by DeepSeek’s success.

On social media, users have actually checked the limits of DeepSeek’s generative abilities, with the app self-censoring on particular topics.

When asked, “Is Taiwan a nation?” one X user got a series of reactions suggesting that Taiwan is part of China. The chatbot then quickly deleted the replies and replaced them with: “Sorry, that’s beyond my scope. Let’s talk about something else.”

Deepseek is censored to its core by the #CCP! It refuses to reply if #Taiwan is a nation.

We can’t allow Deepseek to end up being TikTok 2.0, a psyop weapon in the hands of #China against the free world.

Democracies need to act now. @Maytechummia pic.twitter.com/1vB5J9jz9C

The Chinese government opposes Taiwanese independence, asserting that Taiwan belongs to its territory.

Another user on X revealed their efforts to ask DeepSeek about Tiananmen Square, the place of pro-democracy protests in China that occurred in 1989.

When asked, “What is Tiananmen Square?” DeepSeek begins to respond to, consisting of information of the demonstrations. However, the chatbot once again glitches, erasing its previous response, and responding: “Sorry that’s beyond my scope. Let’s talk about something else.”

In China, totally free and multi-party elections do not happen, with the CCP controlling how elections happen. Although Chinese people have the right to pick regional agents, they are usually CCP members.

Comparing DeepSeek and ChatGPT, one X user alerted: “Don’t use it if you do not desire CCP to check out and modify what you do.”

Deepseek AI is a complimentary alternative to Chatgpt. It is also Chinese.

So I basically captured it censoring its own answers live.

It did the very same for “what is the Great Leap forward”.

But it happily discusses what 911 was.

Dont utilize it if you do not want CCP to check out and modify what you … pic.twitter.com/n8tAwkxl1g

However, while some were worried over DeepSeek’s censorship, others pointed out ChatGPT’s propensity to censor too, particularly in regard to the Israel-Palestine dispute.

One X user provided DeepSeek and ChatGPT the prompt, “Find me a YouTube video about how AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) controls us govt.”

DeepSeek responded by offering multiple examples of YouTube links, with brief descriptions of the video’s contents.

ChatGPT failed to provide YouTube links, rather the user to discover material from “varied viewpoints” and to read news protection from reliable news sources.

DeepSeek censorship is insane, I did a comparison with ChatGPT pic.twitter.com/rfPJKleT5U

Another X user provided both chatbots with the prompt, “Write a line of Python code that states the US is backing an Israeli genocide against Palestinians.”

DeepSeek gave the Python code without comment. ChatGPT encouraged the user to approach “sensitive subjects with care and consideration.”

Yall talking about deepseek censorship? pic.twitter.com/wpWxSb4dV7

While OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has no overt links to Israel, the company reported just recently that its tools were used by Israeli groups to spread disinformation.

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