In order to tackle growing concerns over AI generated books and AI’s being trained using authors’ materials, the Author Guild has created a Public Survey to garner feedback.
In a statement they said, “Companies have scraped millions of copyrighted books/articles and copied them without permission to train generative AI. We are conducting a survey and would like to hear from you.”
The survey has 8 question and the options are typically, “Yes, No and Don’t Know”. Some of the questions are;
- Do you think a writer’s consent should be required if their works are used to build and further develop an AI system?
- Do you think writers should be compensated for the use of their works in developing generative AI?
- Would you be willing to license your work to AI companies to train their AI if you could decide whether to prevent or allow significant uses of your works in AI outputs and were compensated for any substantial, identifiable use of your work in outputs?
This survey follows a May 2023 survey on the same topic. Results from that survey showed;
- 90% of writers believe authors should be compensated for the use of their books in training Generative AI
- 65% of writers say they support a collective licensing system to compensate authors for the use of their works in training generative AI
- 23 percent of writers reported using generative AI as part of their writing process.
- Of that group:
- 54 percent use ChatGPT
- 13 percent use GPT-4
- 8 percent use Bard
- Of that group:
The Authors Guild has a firm stance on AI;
“Artificial intelligence machines capable of generating text-based works pose a serious threat to the writing profession. Generative technologies built using vast amounts of copyrighted works without the permission of or compensation to authors and creators can cheaply and easily produce works that compete with—and displace—human-authored books, journalism, and other works. The market dilution caused by AI-generated works will ultimately result in a shrinking of the profession as fewer human authors will be able to sustain a living practicing their craft, and shut out important, diverse voices. Beyond the economic impact on writers, the unregulated development and use of generative AI technologies will lower the quality of books, journalism, and public discourse fundamental to democratic culture.
The Authors Guild believes that it is crucial for our culture and the future of democracy to ensure that our literary arts remain vibrant and diverse. To protect the future of writing, we are actively lobbying for sensible policies and regulations governing the development and use of generative AI. At the same time, we are educating government officials, legislators, authors, and the public about the potential impacts of generative AI, and equipping our members with the knowledge and tools they need to navigate this new landscape.”
Since AI is a newer phenomenon, it’s essential that quantifiable data is gathered in order to best analyze facts and trends, so that evidence-based guidelines and policies in regards to AI in writing can be created.
An avid book reader and proud library card holder, Angela is new to the world of e-Readers. She has a background in education, emergency response, fitness, loves to be in nature, traveling and exploring. With an honours science degree in anthropology, Angela also studied writing after graduation. She has contributed work to The London Free Press, The Gazette, The Londoner, Best Version Media, Lifeliner, and Citymedia.ca.
