Detecting AI-generated text can be trickier than it seems

AI text detection tools are designed to recognise the stylistic traits of computer-generated text. — AFP Relaxnews

So-called generative artificial intelligence programs, like ChatGPT, are capable of creating texts in a matter of seconds. This has prompted some researchers to develop software capable of detecting writing produced by AI. But these new tools are not without their shortcomings, as a new study reveals.

Scientists at Stanford University in the USA have been studying AI-generated text detection tools, testing seven of them. To this end, they submitted 91 essays written by non-native English speakers as part of the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) English proficiency test.