With the rapid advancement of generative AI technology, creative writing, a stronghold of human intelligence, is facing unprecedented challenges.University of Cambridge A recent groundbreaking report shows deep anxiety in the UK publishing industry: over 51% of surveyed novelists believe that AI will eventually completely replace their creative work.

The research conducted by the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy at the University of Cambridge deeply investigated hundreds of creative professionals. The results are alarming: about 59% of writers are convinced that their works have been used to train large language models (LLMs) without authorization or compensation. A more realistic threat lies in the economic aspect, with nearly 40% of writers having already experienced income impacts directly caused by AI, while as many as 85% expect their income to further shrink in the future.

Image source note: The image was generated by AI, and the image licensing service provider is Midjourney.

The report points out that genre literature writers (such as romance, thriller, and crime novels) are most vulnerable to impact, with two-thirds of respondents believing that romance novelists face an "extreme threat." Nevertheless, the industry is not entirely opposed to AI, with about 33% of writers using AI to handle non-creative tasks, such as information retrieval. However, almost all (97%) writers hold extremely negative attitudes toward AI creating entire novels.

University of Cambridge researchers warn that if there is no effective transparency regulation and copyright protection, the literary market may evolve into a "polarized" state: human-created works become high-priced luxury goods, while the market is flooded with low-cost, formulaic AI-generated content. This is not only an economic issue but also a cultural crisis concerning whether human originality will be drowned out by algorithms.

Key points:

  • 😨 Job Replacement Crisis: More than half of British novelists believe AI will eventually completely replace human writers, with genre literature creators feeling the threat most urgently.

  • 💰 Double Blow of Copyright and Income: Nearly 60% of works are suspected of being "stolen" for AI training, and the majority of writers expect AI to significantly reduce industry income overall.

  • ⚖️ Calls for Regulatory Transparency: The industry strongly demands a "permission first, use later" model and requires tech companies to maintain transparency regarding training data to protect creative dignity.