Can AI Help You Detect AI-Generated Written Content?
January 24, 2025
Look, there’s no denying that many of us rely on generative AI tools daily for a wide range of tasks. And why shouldn’t we? AI is a fantastic tool—it often feels like it can do anything. But can AI help you reliably detect written content that was generated by AI in the first place?
Talk about a loaded question (or is it an ironic riddle?). For those of us who work in content creation, it’s especially critical.
We’re living in a world saturated with AI-generated content. The question is, does AI know that?
The Emergence of AI Detection Tools
It’s true: The capabilities of AI are nothing short of incredible. For many writers, AI helps us accomplish more in less time.
But with use comes misuse and abuse—plagiarism and the spread of misinformation are not small issues.
In response, educators, publishers, and other professionals recognized the need for tools to identify whether content was generated by AI or written by a human.
The Challenges of Reliable Detection: Do These Tools Actually Work?
The short answer? Kind of.
The fundamental challenge lies in the relationship between AI generators and detectors—it’s like a dog chasing its tail. As language models become better at mimicking human writing, detection tools must evolve to keep up. Unsurprisingly, this constant back-and-forth leads to accuracy issues.
False positives and false negatives are two major pain points for AI detection tools.
If you’ve ever run your own writing through an AI detection tool, you may have seen a false positive, with your content flagged as AI-generated. This is particularly common with highly structured, technical, or formal writing.
On the flip side (the AI side? Just kidding), modern AI models can generate text with natural variations and imperfections that closely mimic human writing patterns. As a result, detection tools also struggle with false negatives.
The overarching issue is that AI technology evolves rapidly, with new tools emerging almost daily. This makes it incredibly difficult for detection tools to keep pace. A tool that works reasonably well today might deliver inaccurate results tomorrow.
The bottom line? No AI detection tool is fully reliable.
Acting as an AI Detective
If you search for AI detectors, the number of options available can feel overwhelming. While we could review some popular choices, we’re hesitant to endorse any of them. Why?
Quite frankly, AI detection tools are too risky to rely on. You’ve probably heard about students being falsely accused of using AI or seen studies highlighting the inconsistent accuracy of these tools.
Worse still, some writers have lost their jobs due to flawed detection results.
Given these risks, we’re not comfortable placing trust in these tools.
Detecting the Solution
AI detection tools aren’t going away, and perhaps they’ll improve in the future. For now, if you want to know whether something was written by a human or generated by AI, try the straightforward approach: just ask the author. If you ask politely, chances are they’ll be honest.
Alternatively, you can use a plagiarism checker. While it’s not the same as an AI detector, it serves a similar purpose in identifying unoriginal work.
Certifiably Human Writing
Advancing AI technology may one day lead to better tools for distinguishing human-written content from AI-generated text. But for now, AI detection tools aren’t worth the gamble.
You know what is worth the gamble? A team of real, live writers. At The Writers For Hire, we’re here to create authentic content that people want to read.
You know what they say: Real gets real—and we’re the real deal.
