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Media & Arts·P Space·Evidence-backed problem·Published 2026-08-21

‘Was I scared going back to China? No’: Ai Weiwei on AI, western censorship and returning home

Abstract: Ai Weiwei is talking me through the decision-making process before his first visit to China in over a decade. The artist, known around the world as the most famous critic of the Chinese communist regime, had to do some fraught arithmetic before deciding to head back home. Before boarding a flight with his son, who had never met the artist’s elderly mother, Ai thought back to his time in detention when his captors told him he would spend the next 13 years in custody on bogus charges: “They said, ‘When you come ou…

TRV-2026-0840JournalismPermanent record — cite & verify
‘Was I scared going back to China? No’: Ai Weiwei on AI, western censorship and returning home
The quick read

Ai Weiwei is talking me through the decision-making process before his first visit to China in over a decade. The artist, known around the world as the most famous critic of the Chinese communist regime, had to do some fraught arithmetic before deciding to head back home.

Before boarding a flight with his son, who had never met the artist’s elderly mother, Ai thought back to his time in detention when his captors told him he would spend the next 13 years in custody on bogus charges: “They said, ‘When you come out, your son won’t recognise you.’ That was very heavy and really the only moment that touched me.” He ended up spending several months in captivity. Ai says Lao doesn’t really need his guidance any more so he decided to book their flights and roll the dice.

Main points
  • Ai Weiwei is talking me through the decision-making process before his first visit to China in over a decade.
  • The artist, known around the world as the most famous critic of the Chinese communist regime, had to do some fraught arithmetic before deciding to head back home.
  • Before boarding a flight with his son, who had never met the artist’s elderly mother, Ai thought back to his time in detention when his captors told him he would spend the next 13 years in custody on bogus charges: “They said, ‘When you come out, your son won’t recognise you.’ That was very heavy and really the only moment that touched me.” He ended up spending several months in captivity.
Problem

‘Was I scared going back to China? No’: Ai Weiwei on AI, western censorship and returning home: For most people, returning home doesn’t involve weighing up the risk of whether you’ll see close family ever again, but that’s the reality for a 68-year-old whose whole existence has been shaped by authoritarianism and the struggle against it.

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