Top-selling novelist denies AI use, admits plagiarism 'mistakes'
Thelyson Orelien, 38, was accused of using artificial intelligence to write his French-language novel about migration "C'etait ca ou mourir" ("It Was Either That Or Die"), which was set to be translated in more than 20 countries.
Thelyson Orelien, a 38-year-old top-selling novelist, has vehemently denied accusations that he used artificial intelligence to write his French-language novel, "C'était ca ou mourir" (It Was Either That Or Die). The book, which was to be translated into more than 20 countries, has been shrouded in suspicion and withdrawn from the shortlist for France's top literary prize, the Goncourt, after AI detection revealed a 100-percent probability that the text was generated by a computer.
Orelien, in his first detailed response to the scandal, acknowledged past mistakes of plagiarism in his writing but refused to admit to the allegations of AI usage. He emphasized that only here and there, he utilized research tools, particularly for foreign idioms, but insisted that no single sentence in the book was created by a machine, nor did it originate from his gut feelings.
The author admitted to writing drafts of the novel as early as 2017 and completing a first draft in 2019, several years before the introduction of AI text-generating services like ChatGPT. However, he has not made these early drafts available and his Canadian publisher, Boreal, is unable to confirm or deny the allegations of AI involvement.
The AI controversy surrounding Orelien has sparked a broader debate about the ethical implications of AI usage in creative fields, and raised questions about the reliability of AI detection tools. Pangram, one of the most reliable AI detection tools, indicated a 100-percent probability that Orelien had used AI to produce "C'était ca ou mourir."
Written by urgent.news from The Jakarta Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
