AI’s crappy attempt to write my bio
Lois Tuffin asked GPT-4 to write her life’s story but the result was a disappointing eye opener
OPINION
Can artificial intelligence (AI) replace a human writer? I recently put it to the test to find out.
Recently, I invited AI to write my biography. This struck me as a fun idea after spending a morning having GPT-4 write garbage copy, which I revised to make it readable. Yet, my freelance client wanted to use AI to “save time.”
As a lark, I typed in the request: “Write a biography of Lois Tuffin.” What arose made me laugh aloud. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t find any information about a notable individual named Lois Tuffin. It’s possible that she has not made significant contributions in a public context.”
Well played, my digital nemesis. I am humbled.
So, I fed it more details: “Write a bio for Canadian journalist Lois Tuffin.” Just so you know, there’s adequate information about my 30-year career for a simple search to generate a bare-bones biography. But that’s not what GPT-4 churned out. Instead, it barfed up a nondescript summary of any Canadian journalist. Here’s the gist: Lois Tuffin made significant contributions to the field of media. She developed an early passion for storytelling and pursued her education at a renowned journalism school. (without naming the school.)
Further, GPT-4 says I wrote on various topics (like every reporter does) and now speak at journalism conferences (which I don’t). Finally, it describes me as finding inspiration for my writing as I hike in the mountains. (Another dose of pure fiction.) Next, it claimed I have won two awards that don’t exist.
In short, it produced awful results, full of errors. Rather than going deeper to find more, it simply gave up.
My friend Tracy Magee-Graham also gave it a go. GPT-4 changed her birthplace from Ontario to New Orleans then generated some generic drivel that could apply to anyone with a pulse.
Intrigued, my husband Jamie took up the offer from Microsoft’s Copilot to see what it came up with. He proudly showed me how it came up with robust life stories about both me and my late father.
However, all of its content is based on material that I had written, including Bill’s obituary. So, if there’s good content out there written by a human, then AI can get the job done.
In short, go ahead and try these programs but lower your expectations unless it has a treasure trove of good content to work with. Even when I set the bar low, it didn’t come close to what a professional researcher, writer and creative problem solver could deliver.
This technology has the potential to change how we interact to the extent that the smartphone did a generation ago. At this point, I would consider GPT-4 the BlackBerry and Copilot positioned at the iPhone.
Sadly, technology like this makes us lazier and less willing to use our brains. We lose out the more we rely on machines to do things that make us better as humans.
We’ve already outsourced Roombas to do the vacuuming and dishwashers to clean up after supper. Audiobooks read to us and streaming services fill our ears without us deciding what we want to hear.
Without making the effort to think about our words, what will we do? Farm out every part of our lives that can bring us joy?
I refuse to give up thinking but you decide what works for you.