This is one of the first questions that popped into my mind when I first heard about ChatGPT: will AI replace writers?
It’s actually already happening.
News publications and businesses are already using AI to write
NewsGuard, a company that rates the credibility of news websites and counters misinformation, published a report in April 2023 that “identified 49 websites spanning seven languages … that appear to be entirely or mostly generated by artificial intelligence language models designed to mimic human communication.”
In fact, it’s been happening for a while.
In 2021, Semrush published a report on the State of Content Ops & Outsourcing.
This was one of the questions posed to survey respondents: “Who do you outsource content writing to?”
And these were the results (respondents could select multiple answers):
More than a year before the release of ChatGPT, 12% of companies were already outsourcing their content to AI writing tools.
If I had to guess, I would say that percentage is higher now, and probably continuing to increase.
Since the dawn of ChatGPT and the ensuing AI craze, more and more businesses have been coming up with creative ways to use AI for content creation.
What happened to the horses?
Asking the question “Will AI replace writers?” now is similar to asking the question “Will cars replace horses?” in the early 1900s.
According to one historian, “Every family in the United States in 1870 was directly or indirectly dependent on the horse.” Around that time, the nation was home to “8.6 million horses, or one horse for every five people.”
We all know what happened next.
In 1908, the Ford Motor Company created the Model T, the first automobile to be mass-produced on an assembly line.
Still, horses didn’t completely disappear from the face of the earth. They still race in the Kentucky Derby and pull carriages during the holidays. Cowboys ride bucking broncos at rodeos and Budweiser keeps a few Clydesdales on display.
The animals that were once engines of the economy are now primarily used for competition, recreation, and entertainment.
How did this happen?
The automobile made transportation faster, easier, and cheaper (and less stinky).
Now, AI makes writing faster, easier, and cheaper.
So, history seems to suggest that writers—some, not all—will go the way of the horses.
The writers who do stick around will be the ones who learn how to drive.
I’m a writer myself
I started writing almost a decade ago when I was a sophomore in college. I launched my first blog, wrote for the school newspaper, and even published a book.
And I haven’t stopped writing since. Poetry, essay, vignette, research, technical, newsletter—I write it all.
My brain just tends to think in terms of words.
And it’s a cathartic form of self-expression.
I love writing. ❤️
So you can believe me when I say I’m not exactly thrilled about AI swooping in to take the reins of one of the oldest human art forms.
I even avoided asking ChatGPT to write a poem for a while. I was afraid to find out that a computer can write better poetry than I can.
When I finally worked up the courage, I asked ChatGPT to write a sonnet about a sunset. This is what it came up with:
Pretty good. It nails the form, of course. But it’s a bit cheesy, right? Like, it checks all the boxes, but it doesn’t really make you feel, as a good human-written poem can.
Anyway, I’m just trying to say I’m not necessarily rooting for the robot writers. I like humans. I’m a human. I’d rather read stuff written by humans. And I’d like to think I can write a better poem than a robot.
But I’m also a realist.
And the reality in a capitalist society is that faster, cheaper things tend to replace slower, more expensive things.
AI writing tools are faster than human writers
The average human typing speed is about 40 words per minute.
And that’s when the typer is just copying. That rate doesn’t include the time it takes for a human writer to think of what they are going to write.
AI writers, on the other hand, can write hundreds of words in seconds. ⚡️
And that includes the time it takes for the AI to “think”.
Suffice to say, AI is way faster than human writers.
AI writing tools are cheaper than human writers
Copywriters on Upwork, a popular freelance website, charge $19-$45 per hour.
Full-time copywriters earn an annual salary ranging from $50k-$80k per year, depending on their level of experience.
Let’s compare that with the pricing for AI writing tools.
ChatGPT is free.
Copy.ai has a plan for $36 per month that offers unlimited words.
Jasper has a plan for $39 per month that also offers unlimited words.
AI writing tools are much cheaper than human writers.
There’s still hope for writers
If you’re a writer and you’re reading this, wait just a second before you throw your laptop out the window.
While AI has made impressive strides in automating various writing tasks, there are certain types of writing that still require human creativity, emotion, and nuanced understanding.
One area where human writers excel is in the realm of creative writing.
Whether it’s crafting captivating novels, evocative poetry, or engaging short stories, the human imagination is still unrivaled. AI may be able to generate text, but it often lacks the depth and originality that resonate with human readers on a profound level.
Another area is personal writing, e.g., memoirs and autobiographies.
Only human writers can write about their own experiences, emotions, and perspectives. AI may be able to mimic certain writing styles, but it cannot replicate the authenticity and depth that come from genuine human experiences.
Also, human writers still have an edge over AI when it comes to a nuanced understanding of cultural context, social dynamics, and emotional intelligence.
Humor, sarcasm, irony, and other forms of subtle expression rely heavily on the human ability to comprehend complex nuances and context.
So, will AI replace writers?
Yes.
AI will replace some writers.
But AI will not replace all writers.
AI will replace writers who produce writing that is rote, predictable, and formulaic.
But for writing that is creative, personal, unique, emotive, and culturally contextual, human writers will continue to be in demand.
We’re in the transition phase
When the Model T was introduced, horses didn’t disappear overnight.
Any time there’s a revolutionary new technology that becomes widely available, there’s a transitionary period as the technology is integrated into the way things were before.
We’re in that transition phase now.
New use cases for AI are popping up every day.
People are figuring out how to use AI both for their work and for their daily lives.
Countless AI startups seem to be building every AI product imaginable.
During a transition phase like this, there are always winners and losers.
The mission of AI Writers Academy is to support writers (and businesses who use writing services) who aim to end up on the winning side of the AI revolution.
How to make yourself irreplaceable as a writer in the age of AI
The first and most important thing is to get a sense of the types of writing that AI is good at and the types of writing that AI is bad at. The latter are the types of writing you want to make sure you’re building your writing career on.
Over the past few months, I’ve been experimenting with ChatGPT and several other AI writing tools and I’ve gotten a pretty good idea of the writing that AI can do way better than humans, as well as the writing where humans still have an advantage because, well, we’re human.
Writing that AI is good at
- Content outlines: This is the most consistent piece of advice I’ve found as I’m learning how to use AI for writing. Using AI to generate an outline is a great way to get past writer’s block.
- Editing: AI can help identify grammatical errors, typos, and inconsistencies in writing.
- Translating: AI can translate text between languages.
- Email communication: You can feed AI an email you’ve received and it will draft the reply for you.
- Speeches and presentations: AI can make speech outlines and presentation slides.
- Resume writing: AI can provide suggestions and templates for creating effective resumes and cover letters. For example, you can ask AI to write a bullet point in the “Experience” section of your resume.
- Product descriptions: AI can generate detailed and persuasive product descriptions for various items, which is super useful for e-commerce platforms.
- Technical writing: Technical documentation, user manuals, and guides can all be generated by AI.
- Data analysis reports: AI can analyze complex datasets and present insights in a structured and comprehensive manner.
- Social media posts: AI can generate engaging and concise social media content, tailored to specific platforms. It can even optimize the posts for engagement.
- Research papers: AI can help researchers with identifying relevant sources and summarizing information.
Writing that AI is bad at
- Creative writing: Creative writing will probably be the last type of writing that AI will take over. There’s just something fundamentally human required to come up with a good piece of creative writing.
- Poetry: AI is pretty good at generating poetry that follows the rules of a certain form, but it doesn’t often resonate with human emotions or convey deep meaning and beauty.
- Humor: AI should leave the humor to human comedians. It can come up with knock-knock jokes, but it struggles to grasp the subtleties, nuances, and cultural references that make comedy effective.
- Personal narratives: AI lacks the personal experiences and emotions necessary to create authentic and relatable personal narratives that connect with readers.
- Experiential writing: AI struggles to convey sensory details and vivid descriptions that immerse readers in a particular experience.
- Creative dialogue: AI finds it challenging to create natural-sounding dialogue between characters, which often requires an understanding of social dynamics and context.
- Symbolism and metaphors: AI has difficulty grasping and utilizing symbolic or metaphorical language that adds layers of meaning to writing.
- Adaptability and flexibility: This is one of the main things that gives any AI trouble. It has a hard time deviating from pre-programmed patterns.
- Complex arguments: It’s okay at basic arguments, but AI struggles to construct complex and nuanced arguments that require deep critical thinking and understanding of multiple perspectives.
- Unique voice and style: While AI can mimic the general style of certain authors, it typically lacks a distinctive writer’s voice.
- Personalized communication: AI finds it challenging to engage in authentic and personalized communication tailored to specific individuals or audiences, so it’s probably not a good idea to use AI to text your friends.
- Contextual and cultural sensitivity: AI struggles to understand and incorporate cultural nuances and social dynamics.
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em
Focusing on the types of writing that AI is bad at is one approach to future-proofing your writing career as the AI revolution speeds along.
But that might end up being an exercise of bailing water out of a boat with holes in it.
The rock-solid way to keep up with AI as a writer is to learn to use AI.
Think about it. All of these companies are going to want to outsource their content creation to AI writing tools. Okay, but how are they going to do that?
They’ll need people to teach them how. They’ll either hire consultants or full-time “AI-assisted writers” or “prompt engineers”.
So, rather than worrying about whether AI will replace writers, get ahead of the game and learn to use AI to aid in your writing.
Which is exactly what we do here at AI Writers Academy.
Read our blog to learn more.
Conclusion
“Will AI replace writers?” is the wrong question.
AI is already replacing writers.
If you’re a writer, the best way to make sure you don’t get replaced by AI is to learn how to use AI to aid in your writing.