AP Stylebook Bans Anthropomorphizing AI, Francois Fleuret Mocks the Guidance
francoisfleuret · x · 2026-09-24
AP Stylebook has issued guidance telling journalists to avoid anthropomorphizing AI: systems "do not think, feel, want or understand," and writers should instead describe what a system does, how well it performs, who built it, and who could be affected.
Researcher François Fleuret quoted the rule with a dry jab — "Those ... words ... are complicated words" — poking at both the clunky prescribed phrasing and the deeper debate over whether AI systems truly "understand."
Related event: AP Stylebook Bans Anthropomorphizing AI, Drawing Widespread Backlash(13 posts)→
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