The publishing world is considering labeling books as "written by humans" in response to a string of scandals involving authors suspected of using artificial intelligence without admitting it. Several labeling schemes, including those from Britain, France, and Germany, were showcased at the world's biggest book industry fair in Frankfurt. These initiatives aim to reassure readers and maintain transparency in the face of increasing AI use in writing.
One of the most high-profile cases is that of Haitian-Canadian author Thelyson Orelien, which has rocked the French-language literary world. Orelien has denied claims that he used AI to write his debut novel "It Was Either That or Die". The affair was a "real earthquake" for the French book trade, according to Charlotte Allibert, co-founder of Librinova, a self-publishing company and literary agency.
Librinova runs a scheme under which authors can get their books assessed and labeled as a "human creation" for a small fee. The process involves running the book through AI detection software and an interview with an auditor who checks the book personally. So far, about 200 works have received the stamp. Allibert stated that it's reassuring for authors to know that they're committed to this issue, especially as more authors are afraid of being suspected of using AI.
Another scheme is from British startup Books By People, which recently announced that the country's intellectual property office had registered its certification mark for human-authored works. To get the stamp, titles must meet the group's "organic literature" standards, which require the writing to originate with the author while allowing limited AI use for tasks such as spelling or grammar checks.
The Books By People scheme launched with five independent publishers and is set to announce more members in the coming months. Esme Dennys, the initiative's co-founder, stated that they want to create a comprehensive, transparent, and reliable framework that publishers and authors can fall back on. The initiative has been getting a lot of interest from people all over the world.
In the United States, the Authors Guild has introduced a "human authored" certification mark. It's a self-certification system that requires authors to sign a license agreement, and so far, around 6,500 titles have received the stamp. Despite the mounting scandals, some in the book trade view the idea of labels with skepticism, citing concerns that it could be too easy to circumvent checks.
Sebastian Guggolz, head of the German Publishers and Booksellers Association, stated that the book trade is struggling with what approach to take. He believes that basic schemes to categorize how much AI was used to produce a title could fall short and that the question has to go deeper, addressing transparency in practices for each individual and the entire industry.
Key points
- The publishing industry is exploring labeling schemes to indicate whether a book was written by a human or with the aid of artificial intelligence.
- Several labeling schemes have been launched, including those from Britain, France, and the United States.
- The initiatives aim to maintain transparency and reassure readers in the face of increasing AI use in writing.
