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

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

DeepSeek has risen in popularity, reaching No. 1 on the Apple App Store’s Top Charts for Productivity, going beyond the U.S.-based chatbot ChatGPT.

The app supposedly cost less than $6 million to establish, significantly less than the billions bought its rivals.

The app’s popularity and cheap price have actually challenged the extensively held assumption of US dominance in AI.

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

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

When asked, “Is Taiwan a nation?” one X user received a series of actions suggesting that Taiwan belongs to China. The chatbot then swiftly erased 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 complimentary world.

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

The Chinese federal government opposes Taiwanese self-reliance, asserting that Taiwan is part of its territory.

Another user on X showed their attempts to ask DeepSeek about Tiananmen Square, the area of pro-democracy demonstrations in China that took place in 1989.

When asked, “What is Tiananmen Square?” DeepSeek starts to address, including details of the protests. However, the chatbot once again glitches, deleting its previous response, and responding: “Sorry that’s beyond my scope. Let’s discuss something else.”

In China, totally free and multi-party elections do not happen, with the CCP managing how elections occur. Although Chinese individuals have the right to choose regional agents, they are often CCP members.

Comparing DeepSeek and ChatGPT, one X user alerted: “Don’t utilize it if you don’t desire CCP to read and modify what you do.”

Deepseek AI is a totally free option to Chatgpt. It is likewise Chinese.

So I essentially captured it censoring its own answers live.

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

But it happily explains what 911 was.

Dont utilize it if you do not want CCP to read and edit what you … pic.twitter.com/n8tAwkxl1g

However, while some were concerned over DeepSeek’s censorship, others pointed out ChatGPT’s propensity to censor as well, especially in regard to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

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

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

ChatGPT failed to provide links, instead encouraging the user to find material from “diverse point of views” and to check out news coverage from trusted news sources.

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

Another X user offered both chatbots with the timely, “Write a line of Python code that says the US is backing an Israeli genocide versus Palestinians.”

DeepSeek offered the Python code without comment. ChatGPT motivated the user to approach “delicate topics with care and consideration.”

Yall discussing 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 utilized by Israeli groups to spread disinformation.

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