Japanese author, who won top literary prize, admits using ChatGPT to write novel

Rie Kudan's use of ChatGPT for the novel has been slammed by critics. (Image: @qudanrie/X)

Rie Kudan, the recent recipient of Japan's prestigious Akutagawa Prize for literature, disclosed on Wednesday that a portion of her award-winning book, “Tokyo-to Dojo-to” (Tokyo Sympathy Tower), was crafted in collaboration with the generative AI, ChatGPT. The 33-year-old literary virtuoso, celebrated for her sci-fi exploration of a high-rise prison tower intertwined with AI themes, stunned the literary world with her approach.

Kudan, 33, in her acceptance speech, candidly shared the extent of her collaboration with ChatGPT, stating, "This is a novel written by making full use of a generative AI like ChatGPT, and probably about 5 percent of the whole text is written directly from the generative AI. I would like to work well with them to express my creativity."

The accolades poured in for Kudan's novel, with judges hailing it as "almost flawless." However, the disclosure triggered a swift and fierce reaction on social media. Concerns about the future of literature echoed through various platforms, questioning the implications of allowing AI to compete for top literary honours.

The Japan Times reported on Friday that the backlash on social media was palpable, with many commenters expressing reservations about the potential influence of AI on the artistic landscape. The use of generative AI in creative fields remains contentious, primarily due to the systems being trained on a vast corpus of existing authors' works.

The fear that AI might regurgitate texts wholesale, potentially incorporating personal information scraped from the internet, has intensified the ongoing debate.

Kudan's revelation raised questions about the ethical boundaries of AI involvement in creative pursuits. While some observers acknowledged the inclusion of AI-generated responses within the book, arguing for a defensible position, others sought clarification from Kudan's publisher, who, as of now, has not responded to inquiries from The Japan Times.