Can AI be used to write papers and homework?

The rapid developments and widespread adoption of generative artificial intelligence (AIGC) in natural language processing have significantly transformed various industries and aspects of daily life. AIGC products have made tasks like content creation, customer service, and data analysis more efficient and accessible. However, alongside these benefits, the misuse and abuse of AIGC technologies have raised.

Some students use AI to write papers and homework directly, which is a phenomenon worthy of attention. Although the quality of AI-generated texts is questionable, when you open many online social platforms, you can find posts sharing tips on “AI helping you write papers”. Some bloggers explain the specific steps in detail, saying that “AI is the savior”, and netizens line up to “ask for software”. In addition to writing papers and homework, many students also use AI tools to write their learning experiences.

human-machine collaboration is the general trend, but using AI to write papers is contrary to academic ethics. It is necessary to clarify the boundaries between AI ghostwriting and AI assistance, and to define the “AI rate” of articles. The “AI rate” of an article refers to the proportion of content generated by AI tools in the article, reflecting the author’s reliance on AI. domestic universities generally have not set a “reasonable value of AI rate” for papers or assignments, and have not set subdivision standards for different disciplines and different research purposes. there are AI tools dedicated to detecting the “AI rate” of articles in the academic system, the detection effect is difficult to evaluate. The “AI rate” check of student assignments is still mainly based on manual judgment by teachers, and sometimes it is difficult to distinguish the true from the false content generated by AI.

Where is the boundary between AI assistance and AI ghostwriting?

AI assistance should focus on providing advice, generating drafts, and assisting in research, and the final creative and editorial decisions must be in the hands of the author. In contrast, AI ghostwriting involves the use of AI to complete the entire or most of the writing process, lacking the user’s deep involvement and critical thinking.

In addition, AI writing may also involve legal issues such as copyright ownership. There are currently different opinions on whether the intellectual property rights carried by AI-generated text content should belong to the AI ​​development company or the service user.

the act of using AI to write an entire paper is a typical academic misconduct, which is no different from the traditional practice of hiring someone to write for you. AI writing materials requires the use of massive amounts of text data, and the text content generated can easily be similar to existing works, resulting in legal risks such as copyright infringement.

AI ghostwriting refers to scenarios in which AI tools are used in producing large chunks of content with very little input from the user and misrepresenting AI work as being that of the user. This is relying on AI to come up with full sections or complete pieces with little or no original analysis or insight from the user. Such use of AI lessens the intellectual engagement of the user and exposes the user to ethical concerns, more especially within an academic and professional context where originality and contribution should absolutely be one’s own. On averting this, the line would be that users ought to have AI assist, rather than replace, creative and analytical work, and be very upfront about AI’s involvement in creation.

AI technologies continue to advance proper guidelines and ethical standards are required by institutions and individuals so that AI is responsibly used as complementing human effort. while ensuring academic and professional work still retains its integrity through transparency and setting boundaries.