Can You Prove That Writing is AI?

Can You Prove Writing is AI?

Unless you have video evidence of the perpetrator inputting a prompt into ChatGPT, it's very hard to prove whether a piece of text was written by artificial intelligence or written by a human. AI writing detectors like Turnitin can give you clues, but even they fall short of being 100% accurate.

Undetectable AI writing tools are perhaps the most popular AI text generators today, so unless your professor knows the ins and outs of those large language models, they will think their generations are human written content.

In some instances though, students and businesses haven't wised up to the right AI technology if they want AI written work that won't get them caught. The uninformed are still using ChatGPT or other mainstream generative AI systems to create AI written text that any free AI detector works on.

This guide is to help identify the users that didn't do their homework to subscribe to StealthGPT to create human written text. I'm going to show you how to identify AI generated content without a detector.

How to Tell if Writing is AI Generated

Does your writing sound like AI? It might regardless of how it was generated. There are a few watermarks of AI writing to keep an eye out when reading any piece of text.

Here's how to tell if a someone used AI so you can detect AI generated content like a machine:

Inconsistencies and Repetition

When identifying AI written content, keep an eye out for nonsensical or strange sentences and abrupt transitions in tone and style. AI writing often struggles to stay coherent and keep continuity.

AI also memorizes patterns of writing so sentence structure and word choice can often feel repetitive.

Real World Context

AI systems don't understand the context within each prompt is given or the world's circumstances to frame their answer within. If a piece of text fails to grasp the greater context its written in, like the current events of the time, maybe you're reading AI text. Consider any specific references within the writing to prove the piece's point, are they out of context?

Personalization

AI writing can't capture an individual's unique voice. The more authentic and different a person's words, ideas, and worldviews are, the less likely the content you're reading is AI. Though, many undetectable AI writing tools are built to personalize toward targeted demographics, you want to look for writing personalized to an individual not a group.

Bullet Points

AI uses too many bullet points as it views them as the most precise method of communicating multiple points. Humans, who have a greater sense of formatting style, know to be more reserved when using bullet points in writing.

Missing Citations

AI will sometimes improperly cite references in a piece of text. Wonky citation formats might be a sign that points to AI writing.

AI Hallucinations

Fact check the piece of writing to make sure it includes accurate statements. AI is known to hallucinate facts, so if you see anything that's clearly misinformation, there is a high likelihood the text came from AI.

Placeholder Text

Often times an AI user or student may not even read the AI generated content they're submitting. If you find placeholder text like "Insert name here" in the content, that's a dead giveaway as to how the text was written.

How to Check if a Student Used AI

The previous methods all apply to students, but for academic writing specifically, there are more ways to be the AI detector your student has always dreaded. They are:

Compare to Previous Writing

Comparing the newly suspected text to previous writing by the student is a good way to test whether they used AI. Students maintain a writing style throughout their work, so try to identify trends in word choice, structure, and complexity of ideas.

Quiz the Student

Quiz the student about the writing they submitted. Ask them to explain complex points, have them make the case for their argument verbally, also ask them the meaning of words and phrases they used.

Ask to See Their Work History

Human writing has certain writing and research behaviors. If a student lets you see their work history, you should see how they developed their final draft and be able to track the trail to the sources they cited.