Satirizing AI Witch Hunts: Author Loses $2M Deal for Failing to Prove Human Origin
nptacek · x · 2026-08-06
An author recently lost a $2M publishing deal because they couldn't prove their work wasn't generated by AI. Mocking this extreme anti-AI scrutiny, the author sarcastically argues that if we truly want to preserve literary purity, books should be written exactly as they were in the past—using ink made from crushed insects and quill pens, with every copy transcribed by monks. Anything using keyboards or grammar checks is simply 'slop'.
Related event: AI Books Make Up 40% of Self-Published Sales; Authors Face Proof Burden(15 posts)→
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