Publishers and authors were outraged when Google scanned millions of books for search purposes without permission. Many publishers sued Google and the cases went on for several years. The scanned books remain online and Google won some of the most important cases. The latest tech raid on published content seems much more insidious. Meta used the full text of many published books to ‘train’ its own LLM (Large Language Model), and other AI startups have been engaged in similar activities. Author reactions have been overwhelmingly negative.
Ask Your Enemy: an AI's Opinion on Creating Content
With AI well on the way to global conquest, I find myself framing questions for our impending overlords. In this case, how human online content creators can hold their own against torrents of auto-generated filler.
My Question: If SEO is compromised and made ineffective by the explosion of AI content, how should content creators promote websites and have them rank well in search?
And ChatGPT helpfully suggested the following:
1. Focus on User Intent
AI has made search engines more adept at understanding the context and intent behind search queries. Instead of just targeting keywords, create content that answers the questions and needs of your audience in a natural, conversational tone1.
2. Optimize for Voice Search
With the rise of voice assistants like Siri and Alexa, optimizing for voice search is crucial. Use long-tail keywords and natural language phrases that people are likely to use when speaking rather than typing1.
3. Leverage AI Tools for Content Creation
AI tools can help generate and optimize content, but it's important to balance this with human creativity. Use AI to assist with tasks like keyword research, meta tag optimization, and content suggestions, but ensure the final content is high-quality and unique1.
4. Prioritize Quality Over Quantity
Instead of producing a large volume of content, focus on creating fewer, high-quality pieces that provide real value to your audience. This approach can help you stand out in search results and build a loyal readership.
5. Stay Updated with SEO Trends
SEO is constantly evolving, especially with the integration of AI. Keep up with the latest trends and algorithm updates to ensure your strategies remain effective1.
6. Build a Strong Backlink Profile
Backlinks from reputable websites continue to be a strong ranking factor. Focus on creating valuable content that others will want to link to and engage in outreach to build relationships with other content creators and influencers.
By adapting to these strategies, content creators can continue to promote their websites effectively and rank well in search results, even in the age of AI content.
Appallingly Amazing -- AI LLMs are moving into startling new areas...
An interesting account of an AI parsing a review and then composing a coherent audio discussion about the review, all in seconds. It starts like this:
“The first thing I pulled off my desktop for Todd was a review I wrote about a Bob Dylan documentary film, which originally ran on Design Observer in 2022. Off it went, and I went back to work. No more than 10 minutes later I received an email with a sound file. Rather than edit or rewrite my text, the AI used the content as the basis for an “original” podcast featuring two perfectly normal generative voices talking about Dylan in their own terms, but seen through my eyes (or words). It was a perfect simulacrum.”
and ends like this:
With natural voices, interplay, hesitations and more.
I’ve heard it said that most traffic on the Internet is already bots talking to other bots. It is now so easy to produce entirely synthetic material, surely AI enabled material will soon constitute the overwhelming majority of all online content, and it is happening so very fast…
AIs Move into Audiobooks...
A well voiced audiobook is a thing of beauty indeed — an exciting, immersive experience. And a very human one. But narrators are about to feel the cold digital breath of AIs trained to narrate with naturalistic, believable voices.
Risks abound:
“But despite the positive impact AI voice generation can make, the technology is associated with numerous risks as well. Some of them include misuse, fraud, impersonation, and even voice theft, which especially affects professional voice actors.”
No doubt the initial results for multi-narrator audiobooks will be fairly primitive, but they will improve, and probably with startling speed. AI music is already flooding the streaming world, and real-life musicians aren’t getting much income out of that. Hollywood actors won some restrictions on the use of AI in their industry, but voice actors may not have quite as much clout.
Reedsy has a cheery article on optimal ways to use AI narrators. According to the writer:
“Also, it’s worth bearing in mind that the listener will get used to an AI voice after a few minutes and start accepting it as a real voice.”
DragGAN Drops
Another ‘AI is functionally equivalent to magic’ post. DragGAN is an experimental AI App that allows for extensive intuitive photo editing on the fly, including changing perspective, facial features, hair colour and length.
“the results are mesmeric. DragGAN is an interactive way of editing photos or works of art by tagging points on an image and just… dragging. The AI does all the hard work.”
A Directory of AI Tools
With the advent of ChatGPT and Midjourney, natural language AI tools are going seriously mainstream. Futurepedia does yeoman’s work of cataloguing the ongoing explosion of AI powered tools.
Prominent YouTuber Tom Scott thinks this may the beginning of a wave that transforms work and everything else.