How Do You Know That Jim Actually Wrote This Column?
Traveling around the country for the past few years, the AI conversation people always want to have is about AI fakes, whether written, image or video. While nobody likes “AI slop,” almost everyone tells me they can tell when something was written or generated by AI.
When I ask how they can be so sure, they give me that “how can’t YOU tell?” look. They say it’s the words. Certain phrases. Those “em” dashes. And photos? Just look for seven fingers on the right hand or perhaps three eyes. Dead giveaway, right?
In many of my classes, I put this to the test. I show students three or four pictures, with one human-taken photo and the others AI replicas. It’s not as easy as it seems. I’ve never had anyone get all of them correct, though I’ve had numerous people miss them all. The average accuracy is roughly 20%, by my very unscientific count. I’m confident written examples would produce similar results.
So why does that matter?
There’s a huge difference between people who take the first result AI gives them and put their name on it, and what is truly troubling these days. We’ve all heard stories of college, and even high school, students doing that. But that’s just the tip of the problem.
The real issue is the number of people who know it takes only a little effort to make real and fake nearly indistinguishable. Apparently, people with less-than-pure intent have plenty of time on their hands.
In a 2026 study, AI-authored articles accounted for about half of articles on the web, roughly equal to human-written content. Fake YouTube posts are harder to measure, while one third-party audit found YouTube’s automated AI-labeling system accurately identified only about half of AI content.
We need to be hyper-aware in the age of AI. And it’s not just the high-tech stuff. Last issue I wrote about the beloved QR code. Did you know there’s now a term called “quishing”? It stands for QR phishing, where attackers use seemingly harmless QR codes to direct users to malicious content.
Is anything sacred anymore? As for whether I wrote this article? Maybe. My AI will never tell.
Jim Spellos, President of Meeting U., is a trusted technology expert in the meetings and events industry and RCMA’s key technology voice. Known for making complex tools and trends clear, relevant, and actionable, he inspires audiences to embrace change, work smarter, and lead with confidence.