The US Authors Guild has launched a certification process for writers to confirm that their books “emanated from the human intellect” and not from artificial intelligence (AI).
Its “Human Authored” certification enables authors “to distinguish their work in an increasingly AI-saturated market”.
Currently the certification, which can be applied for via an online portal, is only open to Authors Guild members, but the Guild plans to expand the programme to include multiple authors as non-members.
Accredited authors will be able to use the “Human Authored” logo on their book covers and other promotional materials to demonstrate their work has been done without AI.
Authors Guild CEO Mary Rasenberger said: “The Human Authored initiative isn’t about rejecting technology — it’s about creating transparency, acknowledging the reader’s desire for human connection and celebrating the uniquely human elements of storytelling.”
“Authors can still qualify if they use AI as a tool for spell-checking or research, but the certification connotes that the literary expression itself, with the unique human voice that every author brings to their writing, emanated from the human intellect.”
The Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS), which last year conducted a survey of over 13,500 authors’ views on AI and compiled a 40-page report, which it presented to the government in December, told The Bookseller it welcomed the “Human Authored” idea.
Richard Combes, deputy chief executive of ALCS, told The Bookseller: “Our colleagues in the US are showing what can be done to address the AI challenge, not just on better labelling with the Human Authored initiative, but also the Created by Humans project, a transparent, consent-based approach, enabling access to works for AI training.
“We must look at developing similar ideas here rather than pursuing unworkable and unbalanced changes to our gold-standard copyright rules.”
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