AI-generated books are rapidly expanding Amazon’s catalogue, often with little disclosure to customers and limited evidence of human authorship. Kashmir Hill reports in The New York Times that an AI generated biography of her appeared on Amazon without her knowledge or participation. The 90 page book, titled “The Biography of Kashmir Hill,” mixed public facts …
A story titled “The Ghost Paper That Ate Alabama” spread quickly on social media, claiming a right-wing media company had bought and shut down 47 weekly newspapers, replacing journalists with AI-generated content. Joshua Benton reports for Nieman Journalism Lab that the story, published by a site called The Editorial, was entirely invented. Benton found that …
Brands are using AI-generated influencers to mimic authentic customer experiences on social media, often without any disclosure to consumers. Sarah Marsh reports for The Guardian that an investigation identified several companies posting AI-generated videos and photos designed to look like real user-generated content (UGC). Examples include a video of an apparently AI-generated bride praising a …
A collage of roughly 220 Amazon book covers reveals a hidden pattern in the flood of AI generated nonfiction. The covers, all discovered by searching for “100,000 whys”, look deceptively normal. Yet their eerie similarity exposes the telltale footprint of large language models. Security researcher and writer Michał Zalewski presents the collage on his blog …
A San Francisco marketing agency copied the entire contents of a bestselling book, replaced its original artwork with AI-generated images, and launched a website that now outranks the official page in search results. Andy Baio writes on Waxy.org that the agency, Qontour, built the unauthorized platform for John Koenig’s “The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows” without …
Moderators of the popular subreddit r/biohackers have banned standalone posts about peptides and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) after discovering that companies in those industries were systematically spamming the community to manipulate AI chatbot responses. Jason Koebler reports for 404 Media that the tactic is part of a broader activity, often known as Generative Engine Optimization …
An AI detection tool called Pangram has become the dominant force in identifying AI-generated writing, influencing decisions at publishers, universities, and scientific institutions. Matteo Wong reports for The Atlantic that Pangram has been used to flag a horror novel pulled before publication, articles in major newspapers, award-winning short stories, and portions of Pope Leo XIV’s …
AI-generated avatars are flooding social media feeds, promoting products and building loyal audiences, often without disclosing that they are not real people. Charlie Warzel reports for The Atlantic, drawing on an interview with New York Times technology reporter Tiffany Hsu, who has investigated the rise of synthetic influencers selling supplements and other consumer products. One …
The companies behind AI-powered search tools like Google’s AI Mode and ChatGPT are increasingly shaping which brands consumers discover. The SEO industry is racing to exploit that influence, and some of the tactics are already working. The Verge reports on a growing wave of manipulation attempts targeting AI search systems. One widespread tactic involves companies …
Romance novelist Coral Hart produces over 200 books annually using artificial intelligence, earning six figures from sales on Amazon. What once took her months now takes 45 minutes per novel. Alexandra Alter reports for The New York Times that the romance industry is rapidly adopting AI writing tools, despite significant controversy within the community. Hart, …