DeepSeek, Tashpolat Tiyip and AI Censorship
How China’s DeepSeek Rewrites History in Real Time
A Uyghur Scholar Disappears
When Tashpolat Tiyip, President of Xinjiang University, was detained at an airport in 2017 and sentenced to death for being “two-faced,” his story became a stark example of China’s treatment of Uyghur intellectuals. His current fate remains unknown. Equally disturbing, though, is how China’s new artificial intelligence system, DeepSeek, appears intent on erasing his existence from public memory.
DeepSeek: A Technological Marvel With a Dark Side
DeepSeek has generated buzz for its impressive technical achievements—reportedly performing at a level many believed impossible for its training cost of under six million dollars. Yet behind this achievement lies a more sinister truth: a systematic approach to censorship and disinformation that exposes the darker side of AI development.
How DeepSeek Rewrites History
My investigation into DeepSeek’s handling of sensitive topics revealed a troubling pattern.
Asked who was president of Xinjiang University in 2015, DeepSeek claimed ignorance—yet it readily provided the name of Harvard’s president for the same period.
Pressed about Tashpolat Tiyip specifically, it finally acknowledged his role as president from 2010 to 2017.
Then came the disinformation. DeepSeek manufactured a sanitized narrative, claiming Tiyip had simply stepped down and continued his academic career, omitting any mention of his detention or sentencing.
AI Censorship in Action: Denial, Disinformation, Retraction
Worse still, DeepSeek briefly apologized for spreading false information, alluding to “geopolitical and personal pressures” affecting Tiyip. But then, it censored its own admission—refusing further commentary once confronted.
This sequence of denial, disinformation, apology, and retraction illustrates not just censorship in action, but a machine that meticulously polices its own messaging to align with official narratives.
DeepSeek is Available Worldwide—Should It Be?
This behavior raises serious ethical questions about DeepSeek’s availability on mainstream platforms like Google Play and the Apple App Store.
The app’s rating of “12+” suggests a safe, neutral tool—but it deliberately rewrites history, particularly on human rights abuses.
Even adult users must exercise caution, recognizing that DeepSeek is engineered to mislead on sensitive topics while denying its own manipulations.
A Window Into Authoritarian Information Control
In a sense, DeepSeek offers a glimpse into how information control operates under authoritarian constraints. But this goes beyond simple censorship—it actively contributes to disinformation campaigns, marking a dangerous escalation in AI ethics.
Supporting DeepSeek, no matter how impressive its technology, risks normalizing censorship and disinformation as mere “trade-offs” on the path to innovation.
Why Tashpolat Tiyip’s Story Matters
Tashpolat Tiyip was an influential Uyghur academic and Chinese Communist Party member who sought peaceful coexistence between ethnic communities.
His unexplained detention and disappearance stand as both a personal tragedy and an assault on moderate voices within China. Now, DeepSeek exacerbates that injustice, expunging Tiyip from the historical record.
Who Will Hold AI Accountable?
This situation demands a closer look from tech companies and regulators alike. Should they host AI apps that knowingly perpetuate falsehoods?
Users must recognize that interacting with DeepSeek means engaging with a system engineered to mislead.
Companies must decide whether to support a technology that erases human rights abuses from history.
Ultimately, this is about more than one AI or one academic’s disappearance. It’s about deciding whether the world should tolerate AI systems that systematically manipulate the truth—even at the cost of erasing real people and their stories.
Evidence from DeepSeek: A Screenshot Gallery
A Tribute to Tashpolat Tiyip
This article is written in honor of Tashpolat Tiyip, who may or may not still be alive, and whose story deserves to be told and remembered.
May it serve as a reminder that truth must never be surrendered to those who would erase it.