Amazon Requires Writers to Disclose Use of AI Material

After months of discussions with Authors Guild, Amazon introduced its new disclosure policy which requires authors to disclose if their work includes an artificial intelligence material.

Amazon Disclosure Policy for AI Materials

Amazon officially announced that who authors wishes to sell their books on Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform should inform Amazon of any AI-generated content. This includes text, images, and translations. The policy applies to publishing new books, making edits and republish an existing book.

The AI-generated images refers to the cover and interior images and artwork. However, authors will not be required to disclose it if it is an AI-assisted content.

"If you created the content yourself, and used AI-based tools to edit, refine, error-check, or otherwise improve that content (whether text or images), then it is considered "AI-assisted" and not "AI-generated," KDP explained. This means that the usage of AI to brainstorm and spark ideas are not included in the disclosure policy.

AI vs. Authors

For months, the Authors Guild having been fighting on their rights against the fast progression of AI on the content writing industry. Last month, Amazon was under fire after selling books that were allegedly AI-generated and was credited under a real author. Amazon then removed the books on their platform.

Currently, the guild is working on ensuring that books used for AI training are licensed and has assured that they will not tolerate the use of unlicensed books and journalism.

"We are hopeful, however, that this new policy signals a willingness to move toward providing such transparency for all AI-generated books on Amazon platforms in the near future so that readers can make informed choices," Authors Guild wrote on a blog post.