Writers alter style and add typos to avoid AI detection
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 6
Writers alter style and add typos to avoid AI detection
14 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · May 6
Copywriter Sarah Suzuki Harvard in Brooklyn and startup founder Sean Chou in Chicago said they use slang, extra punctuation or double hyphens to appear more human.
Others deliberately leave mistakes, remove em dashes or rewrite chatbot drafts as online suspicion grows and AI detectors often misclassify human-edited text.
The trend reflects a reverse Turing test as AI writing spreads across books, schools, blogs and LinkedIn, pushing some writers to abandon tools they fear are flattening their voice.
As AI learns to mimic human flaws, how will writers prove their authenticity in the next arms race?
If AI detectors penalize clear writing, are we punishing human skill and disadvantaging non-native speakers?