The Do’s and Don’ts of AI

Do use Artificial Intelligence (AI) responsibly as a second opinion. Ask for basic level suggestions like grammar and spelling checks but be cautious if asking for entire revisions. AI, while useful, cannot understand implicit meanings in a text and may lose the author’s intended nuance. Relying completely on AI will lead to mistakes, so be aware of what it offers for solutions.

Do double-check the output and responses AI gives you for errors and mistakes. AI is far from perfect, and it makes many mistakes simply because it uses word association instead of understanding the content. As AI develops, it will get better at being correct. However, it is nowhere near that stage yet and won’t be for many years.

Do ask colleagues for a second opinion when using AI. Your colleagues are a valuable asset with lots of knowledge that can be used. Colleagues are especially helpful if AI decides to give you questionable responses that may be incorrect.

Don’t rely on AI for everything. While it is a useful tool, it requires much more training and fine tuning before it can be used to do the job completely. This means that it is not ready to replace editing jobs yet, but it may in the future if we don’t learn to work with it responsibly.

Don’t assume that AI will always be right. It is flawed and makes many mistakes that may seem right at first glance. At this stage, it requires human intervention to catch the more serious errors it makes.

Don’t be afraid to try using AI programs. They can be useful in the editing world. The more you use them, the more familiar you will be with how they work and how to get the input you seek. Just remember that AI is not a solution to every problem; it is simply another useful tool. 

—Sara