> Types like uint8_t* are widely used to reinterpret other structures as byte arrays which implies they are universal aliases just like char*

Alternatively, it implies that there's alot of broken code out there. So much broken code that they've accidentally found safety in numbers, and compilers are unlikely to change a coincidental behavior upon which they wrongly relied. See https://gcc.gnu.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=66110