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The Literary Uncanny Valley Will Not Last, and Publishing Knows It

Crikey

ENRICHED

Details

Date Published
22 May 2026
Priority Score
2
Australian
Yes
Created
23 May 2026, 08:00 am

Authors (1)

Description

The future of how we grapple with AI in writing is Friction and Non-Friction.

Summary

This analysis explores the shrinking gap between human-authored and AI-generated creative writing, arguing that current stylistic markers of AI will soon vanish as frontier models improve. While primarily focused on the creative industries, it highlights the rapid advancement of LLM capabilities and the ensuing erosion of our ability to distinguish synthetic content from human thought. This trajectory underscores broader risks concerning digital deception and the long-term impact of high-capability AI on cultural and cognitive integrity. The piece provides an Australian perspective on how local publishing and media sectors are failing to prepare for a post-distinguishable AI landscape.

Body

There’s still, for now, a particular feeling you get when you read AI writing. If you’ve spent even a little time with large language models like ChatGPT, or been exposed to enough high schoolers and university students trying to pass prompt output off as their own work, you start to recognise the literary uncanny valley. The original uncanny valley comes from robotics and animation: the closer something gets to seeming human, the more we respond to it positively, right up until it gets too close without being right.