Clarke recently had to temporarily shut down the online submission form for Clarkesworld, his science fiction and fantasy magazine, after being overwhelmed by AI-generated, horrendous stories. “They were some of the worst stories I’ve ever read,” Clarke says.
Not only is the quality poor, Clarke and his team also have to manually review hundreds of AI-authored pieces of content, doubling their workload. AI tools have been a thorn in Clarke’s side for months. Soon, he may have to close the form again because he can’t handle it.
Since ChatGPT launched in late 2022, many prominent tech figures such as Bill Gates have spoken about the potential of AI for workers, helping employees work less and creating new, better jobs. However, the long-term impact varies across industries and markets. Moreover, it also comes with unintended consequences.
Big Tech is jumping into the AI race, pledging billions of dollars for new AI tools that help people compose emails, create presentations, and summarize data and text faster.
In a recent study, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that ChatGPT increased productivity for workers doing things like writing cover letters, writing sensitive emails, and analyzing cost-benefit analyses. But Shakked Noy, a co-author of the study, said it’s too early to know if it’s good or bad, or how it will change society.
Mathias Cormann, Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), also said that AI improves some aspects of work, but there are trade-offs. Workers reported increased work intensity after AI was introduced to the workplace. Additionally, for those who are not AI experts or managers, the use of AI has had minimal impact on wages, meaning that on average, work has increased but wages have not.
Union workers say they feel like “guinea pigs” as their bosses rush to implement AI tools, according to Ivana Saula, research director for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The adoptions have been uneven and have taken on other tasks for everyone, adding time and pressure to daily workflows.
The pros and cons of AI are perhaps most apparent in the media industry. AI promises to speed up copywriting and certain editorial tasks, but it has made notable mistakes. For example, Cnet had to edit multiple articles when it tested using AI to write news stories. A simple story about the Star Wars movie on the Gizmodo blog in early July 2023 caused chaos among staff. Both publications have signaled that they will continue to rely on AI to help their newsrooms.
Others, like Clarke, have tried to fight fire with fire by using AI tools to detect AI-generated content. But even those tools are often unhelpful because they often report false positives, especially for authors whose native language is not English.
(According to CNN)
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