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What is an AI detector? Detect and identify AI text

Trilok Sonar
August 29, 2023
6 minutes

What is an AI detector?

An AI detector is a tool that uses machine learning algorithms to determine the source of a text. It helps determine whether the piece of text or content is generated by an AI or by a human. 

The AI detector uses structure, language usage and predictability to analyze patterns and anomalies that are usually found in text that is generated by AI. By using an AI detector tool, brands can make sure that their published content not only captivates and informs but also upholds high standards of quality and credibility.

How do AI detectors work?

AI detectors are trained on data similar to AI creation tools. That means it uses machine learning algorithms and natural language processing to compare and analyze patterns in the text.

These tools are trained on large datasets of human written text and use that to compare it with AI-generated text. To be specific, AI detectors look for two things when analyzing text: Perplexity and Burstiness. The lower the values of these factors are, the more likely it is that the text was produced by an AI tool

Let's take a look at what these two words actually mean.

Perplexity 

Perplexity simply measures the complexity of a text. If the perplexity is low, that means the text was AI-generated. This means that the text is fairly simple to understand and also very predictable. 

Burstiness

Burstiness refers to the variation in sentence structure and length. An AI-generated text will have sentences of the same length whereas a human written text can have a mixture of short sentences and long sentences.  

So, the lower the burstiness, the more likely it is that the text was generated by an AI.

How accurate are AI detectors?

How accurate are AI detectors?

The accuracy of AI detectors can vary based on the type of sentences they receive as input. While they can be highly effective in identifying certain types of content, they are far from perfect. Sometimes they work well, sometimes they don't. Its accuracy can easily fail if the AI output was edited or paraphrased

False negatives and false positives are common occurrences in this case.

What is a false negative?

A false negative occurs when an AI detector fails to identify harmful or inappropriate content that should have been flagged. This can happen due to various reasons, such as tactics used by creators of such content to avoid detection or limitations in the algorithms used by the system. 

What is a false positive?

On the other hand, a false positive happens when an AI detector wrongly identifies harmless or acceptable content as being harmful or inappropriate. They may identify human-written text as AI generated. This can happen for a variety of reasons, such as if the text is very well-written or if it has been edited to remove any AI-generated characteristics.

Here are some additional things to keep in mind about the accuracy of AI detectors.

  • The accuracy of AI detectors is constantly improving as AI writing technology evolves.
  • AI detectors are more likely to produce false positives with newer AI-writing models that are better at mimicking human writing styles.
  • AI detectors can be fooled by text that has been edited to remove any AI-generated characteristics.

Some famous AI detection tools that you can check for free are Sapling, CopyLeaks and ZeroGPT. All have an accuracy of about 68%, 66% and 64% respectively.  

These tools have detected texts copied from GPT3.5 and GPT-4 and are also all fairly easy to use. These are currently the best free tools to detect AI-generated texts. 

Does AI detection affect SEO ranking?

How do AI detectors affect SEO and search rankings?

SEO is crucial for businesses and individuals looking to increase their online visibility. When content is flagged by an AI content detector it can have negative effects.

Creating content with AI is more complex than it seems. If the AI-generated content is valuable to the audience, it cannot be considered incorrect. However, if the content contains errors or lacks value, it may lower search rankings and reduce traffic, regardless of whether an AI content detector identifies it.

When a piece of content is flagged as inappropriate or misleading by an AI content detector, it can have a significant impact on SEO and search rankings. Search engines prioritize high-quality, reliable content in their search results, so being flagged can result in a decrease in visibility and traffic to a website.

Google's stance on AI-generated content

Google recognizes the potential of AI in generating content efficiently and at scale. It rewards original, high-quality content that follows something called  E-E-A-T: expertise, experience, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. 

This makes sure that Google focuses on the quality of the content rather than how the content is produced. If the generated content is used to manipulate search rankings then it will be detected as spam and penalize the content. 

This also encourages creators to provide unique and insightful content that adds value to users' experience. So, as long as the content is good and provides value, then there is no need to worry.

AI manipulation can be detected as spam

One way in which AI manipulation can be detected is through the analysis of suspicious patterns. Search engines use algorithms that can identify unnatural spikes or sudden changes in website traffic, backlinks, or keyword usage. These patterns raise red flags and indicate potential manipulation.

AI manipulation can also be detected by analyzing content quality. Search engines evaluate web pages based on factors like relevance, authority, and user experience. 

What happens when your website is marked as spam?

When a website is identified as spam by search engines, it may get lower rankings or even get removed  from search results. This can lead to a significant loss of organic traffic and impact the website or business.

It is crucial for businesses and individuals to understand that attempting to manipulate search rankings through AI techniques is ineffective in the long run. Instead, focusing on creating high-quality content that meets user needs and adheres to SEO practices will get them better results and improve online visibility.

How do you know if a text is AI generated?

How do you know if text is AI-generated?

Here is how you yourself can identify if the text is AI-generated.

Repetition of words and phrases

Although AI may have a lot of knowledge on any subject, it lacks the expertise that human professionals have. Because of this, AI-generated text often repeats the same keywords and phrases when talking about a topic.

Lack of depth 

AI-generated text usually appears very robotic and instructive rather than creative. It lacks unique perspectives and has a generic tone of voice.

Format and structure

AI tools often imitate human sentence structure. As a result, it produces sentences that lack complexity, creativity, and diverse structures usually found in human writing. This can result in the content being uniform and lacking variety.

How to get past any AI detection tool

You can easily avoid getting detected by AI by following two simple steps. AI detection tools are specifically trained to recognize language patterns commonly utilized by AI content generators such as ChatGPT. You can avoid these patterns and make your content one of a kind by writing directly in your own brand voice - with AI. 

Rewrite your text

You can easily rewrite your sentences to avoid AI detection. You can prompt the AI to do it for you. I use Typetone AI to help me rewrite my sentences and it can generate it for me in any unique tone of voice

Use the right AI tool

This is important as it will determine the kind of output you get. I recommend using Typetone AI as it is my favorite and the best AI content generation tool out there. It is quite user-friendly and you can generate basically anything you want, from SEO optimized articles to visual ideas to social media posts to creating cold emails. 

All you have to do is choose any of the ready-made templates and start generating content. You can also iterate with the right prompts using Typetone chat

Once you follow these simple steps, you’re ready to create some feisty content. 

AI hack: Use Typetone’s paraphrasing and rewriting tool to avoid AI detection

When you generate content in a different tone of voice - or add your own brand voice - it's automatically much less likely that an AI detector will pick on you.

Typetone AI paraphrase template as an AI detector

The future of AI tools and AI detection

With how fast the AI scene is progressing, AI agents will make it even harder to detect if something is AI generated or if it is written by humans. 

These agents will specifically be trained to master a brand’s tone of voice and create content that looks exactly like how your colleague would write it. 

For now, let's make do with AI content tools that sound like you, like Typetone AI. Not only does this make your work easier and workflow smoother, it also saves you a lot of time and increases work efficiency. So, try it out yourself and see what Typetone AI has to offer. Try it for free.

Trilok Sonar

Trilok Sonar is our content marketeer and specializes in blogs about AI content.

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