April 17, 2024

AI Warning Labels

Do you think content created with AI should be labeled as such?

Before you shout “HECK YES!” ask yourself what exactly this means.

Would this include:

• Articles you wrote with the help of Grammarly?
• Email responses you composed using Gmail quick replies?
• Photos you took that benefited from color correction built into your iPhone?
• Videos you recorded that had long pauses removed by Descript?
• Books you wrote that had back cover summaries drafted by Claude?
• Podcasts you host that include intro music created by Udio?
• YouTube videos you published that have auto-generated chapter timestamps in the description?

I could keep adding examples but you get the point.

Anything you create with a computing device was created with AI.

And I would argue that this is often a good thing (see list above).

I think the reason some people want “Created with AI” warning labels on content is less about AI and more about not liking “inauthentic” creators trying to “fool” them.

In which case, I suppose we should also have warning labels on content created by ghostwriters and speech writers and food photographers and audio engineers and video editors and image retouchers and so on.

Here’s the thing...

Ultimately, if the content helps the reader/listener/viewer take action in a way that improves their lives, then I don’t think I care who - or what - created it.

Yours,

—J

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