Content Creation in AI Era – Will AI Replace Humans? Specialists Share Their Opinions

Table of contents:

• AI’s Going to Replace Humans as Content Creators – Or Is It?
  • The Advantages of AI in Content Creation
  • The Dangers of Using AI to Generate Content
• What Is the Best Way to Use AI in Content Creation?
• What Does Google Think About AI-Generated Content?
• The Future of Content Creation

ChatGPT is the "fastest-growing consumer application in history," according to research conducted by UBS with estimated 100 million active users per month. And it’s been less than 3 months since it launched! Is the Matrix scenario going to come true? Is the rise of robots inevitable and the doom of humanity is near? Or rather, is AI going to steal our jobs and replace humans as content creators, musicians, and artists? Some people think it’s true and they predict that ChatGPT will soon replace humans. But, is it true? How good AI-generated content really is? Does it have the potential to write “just like Stephen King”, imitate Terry Prattchet's witty humor, or create a criminal mystery worthy of Agatha’s Christy approval? I decided to take a closer look at the AI possibilities and ask specialists from the marketing and SEO industry for their opinion on the matter. Disclaimer: This article’s been written entirely by a human writer, and AI had nothing to do with it (at least not yet). 

AI’s Going to Replace Humans as Content Creators - Or Is It?

The AI topic blow off at the end of 2022 when OpenAI introduced its new, free-to-use chatbot ChatGPT. As you can see from the Google Trends graph the history of ChatGPT is the real ''from zero to hero'' one. People were keen to check what’s the fuss about and to try the possibilities of this new tool. As always, when new technologies arise, there are voices raising concerns about job safety. This time they seem quite legitimate as ChatGPT can produce a piece of content that seemingly might be a cost-effective solution for businesses. So, is content writers’ job at risk? Are they going to be replaced by artificial intelligence? According to specialists, AI is not going to replace human content creators anytime soon. Mainly due to the fact it lacks human creativity and imagination and can not replicate the personal touch that only an actual person can provide. Also, AI can only generate text from the sources it already possesses. No new ideas or data can be created unless we, humans, provide it first. Below you can see some of the messages I received from the specialists which confirm that in their opinion AI is not an alternative to a human content creator. And what does ChatGPT itself think about replacing human writers? Is it ready to take over the world of writing? Interestingly enough its answer is similar to experts’ opinions. Will some companies try to replace humans with AI to save some money? For sure. But it is most likely that they will regret that decision as soon as they realize that AI-generated content is not as good as they imagined.

The Advantages of AI in Content Creation

AI undoubtedly has a lot of potential and advantages. If used in the right way, it can help with creating content, providing a base that can be used by a human to achieve the best result. No wonder people reacted to ChatGPT and similar AI bots with enthusiasm. They really can make our lives easier. According to specialists, AI has the potential to transform the content creation process, allowing people to concentrate on the creative part of writing. As we already established, it is unlikely that AI will replace humans entirely as content creators. Instead, it will become a useful tool that will let human creativity thrive.

The Dangers of Using AI to Generate Content

As you can probably guess, using AI to generate content is not all flowers and rainbows. There are some dangers, that we need to be aware of to keep the business's reputation intact. Most importantly, AI has no fact-checking technology at its disposal. There is no guarantee that the content it creates is factually correct. The best example is Google’s response to ChatGPT - BARD. It failed on its first public appearance making an easy-to-verify mistake. Well, easy if you are an astronomy expert or enthusiast with great knowledge. Google’s employees couldn't catch that mistake which cost the company $100 billion in market value. AI’s source of knowledge is the Internet itself. There is no guarantee that it will choose only a reliable source with accurate information. As we all know, the Internet is full of fake news and misinformation. When I was in school, I found information that Napoleon Bonaparte died in 1812 ( when in fact it was in 1821 ). That mistake cost me a good grade on my school paper and a whole lecture on using the Internet as a source of information. Of course, I didn't realize I'd made a mistake until my teacher pointed it out. That is exactly what AI needs - an experienced human who will verify all the information and make necessary changes. Without it, you might unintentionally put your company in a laughing stock or worse. As we can learn from Google's example, shareholders do not forgive mistakes and it might cost you quite a bit of money. Even OpenAI, the creators of ChatGPT issued a warning:

“ChatGPT sometimes writes plausible-sounding but incorrect or nonsensical answers.”

What's the specialists' view on this matter? They agree that, when it comes to facts, AI can not be entirely trusted. It needs an expert who can catch the "plausible-sounding" mistakes and correct them. Without a human supervisor, we're risking publishing utter nonsense that can affect our reputation. Using AI to generate content is especially dangerous for the Your Money or Your Life websites. We wouldn’t like AI, which has never even been sick or paid taxes, to give us advice on sensitive topics. What we appreciate is the experience specialists have that can help us make good decisions.

What Is the Best Way to Use AI in Content Creation?

Having in mind all the dangers and limitations, AI is a great tool that can help us generate great content. We just need to use it wisely and be realistic about its capabilities. So, what's the best way to use AI when it comes to content creation? Below you’ll find a few ideas from experts who know how to use AI to their benefit without falling into a trap.

What Does Google Think About AI-Generated Content?

Since I started writing this article in early February, Google’s already changed its mind about AI-generated content. At first, it seems to be totally against it, quoting its spam policies.

When it comes to automatically generated content, our guidance has been consistent for years. Using automation—including AI—to generate content with the primary purpose of manipulating ranking in search results is a violation of our spam policies. - Developer's blog

Right now it seems Google is fine with using content generated by AI as long as it’s not written to manipulate the rankings. What does it mean? Tons of low-quality content created only to saturate a website with keywords is considered SPAM - it doesn’t matter if it’s man or AI-made.

This said it's important to recognize that not all use of automation, including AI generation, is spam. Automation has long been used to generate helpful content, such as sports scores, weather forecasts, and transcripts. AI has the ability to power new levels of expression and creativity and to serve as a critical tool to help people create great content for the web. - Developer's blog

As you already know, the content generated by AI is not really creative and tends to be generic and bland. Without a human writer who can edit and provide expertise on the topic, it won’t be considered valuable and helpful. The conclusion for now ( because we all know Google might change its mind again ) is this - it’s ok to use the help of AI to create content. As long as it's valuable and in line with Google guidelines.

The Future of Content Creation

Is it impossible that one-day artificial intelligence will replace human content creators? No. But will it happen anytime soon? That’s rather unlikely. Just as we prefer to speak to an actual person rather than to a robot when we call customer support, we will still prefer stories and articles written by humans. No robot can replicate our stories and experiences. At the moment AI is not good at replicating human creativity and individual voice. It can’t verify the facts it's using to create content and cannot come up with new ideas and data. I would say that content creators can sleep peacefully. Yes, their job might change and evolve with technology, but it doesn’t have to be a bad thing.