A simple ethical code for authors using AI

ByJosh Bernoff

People think AI ethics for authors is complex. It shouldn’t be. There are subtleties, of course, but there are four basic principles to follow.

  1. Don’t publish anything written by AI. There are now solid dependable AI checkers like verifymywriting.com. They’ll catch you (and not because of the em dashes — ordinary writers use those, not just machines). AI-generated text can’t be copyrighted. It tends to be boring. Writers write. It’s your job, and it can’t be outsourced.
  2. Use AI to help. AI is good at research. It’s good at finding errors and inconsistencies. It’s a fine brainstorming partner. It’s a good place to stuff all your source material and then search it.
  3. Don’t trust AI — verify everything. Check facts. Check for plagiarism. Check not only that the sources it cites are real, but that those sources actually say what the AI says they say. If AI makes something up and you include it, it’s you who will look like a fool.
  4. Disclose. Write a simple statement about how you used AI. Then live up to it.

All of this is the same whether you’re an AI enthusiast or an AI hater.

If you agree, then make sure anyone you collaborate with agrees as well — publishers, coauthors, ghostwriters, and researchers, for example.

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2 Comments

  1. Good luck. Your advice is sound and needed, but haven’t you noticed? We’re living in an era of hubris and greed. Until our species recognizes the need to behave in a more humane (not human!) fashion, and takes arms against the rapacious actions of tyrants trying to seize even more money and power, advising people to play fair and behave honestly with AI is kind of like whistling in the dark.

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  2. First, it seems we need to define AI.

    Does spell-checking, grammar-checking, search engine use, auto-completion, etc. count?

    Maybe we need to list the methodology we use to write.

    I recently had Gmail put up a prompt for “Polish”. I was confused as I generally do not write in Polish or use Polish words. They meant “polish”. Like for silver.

    Gmail also just pops up words; some make sense, some do not.

    Curious, too, if you ran any of your writing though a check and if you did, did you learn anything. What happens when the checker is wrong?

    I wonder how the checkers handle meta-analyses where one basically collects quotes and makes hypotheses from the collection.

    Reply