The smooth, eloquent prose of your AI assistant is not the product of a brilliant machine mind. It is the product of a human writer or editor who was likely looking over their shoulder, terrified of being fired. The surprisingly high quality of AI’s language is a testament to the skill of a workforce that is operating under conditions of extreme precarity and fear.
This workforce is made up of contractors who can be dismissed at a moment’s notice. This job insecurity is a powerful motivator. To avoid being on the next layoff list, workers must keep their productivity numbers high, which often means sacrificing the deep, thoughtful editing they were trained to do.
However, their professional pride and skill still shine through. Even in the few minutes they are allotted, these seasoned writers are able to polish the AI’s often clumsy and nonsensical raw output into something coherent and readable. The eloquence you see is the result of their ability to perform high-level editing under intense pressure.
So, when you are impressed by an AI’s turn of phrase, remember the human editor who crafted it. They were likely working against a ticking clock, with the threat of unemployment hanging over their head. The AI’s eloquence is not a sign of its own intelligence, but a sign of the incredible resilience and talent of a deeply insecure workforce.