Is the Web Writer Profession Set to Disappear with Artificial Intelligence?

2023 is marked by a major technological revolution: the arrival of ChatGPT in our daily lives. Indeed, you couldn't have missed the thunderous entrance of OpenAI's chatbot. But while artificial intelligence brings joy to some, others, on the contrary, wonder. The digital world is in full swing.

Will the profession of web writer disappear in the face of AI?

Indeed, why hire a professional for digital content? Especially if a computer program can generate free text infinitely? Let's zoom in on a very legitimate question: what future lies ahead with AI?

Did you say AI?

To tame the beast, one must understand what lies under the hood of artificial intelligence! So, what is AI? Simply a computer program employed by a machine.

This is with the aim to “reproduce human behaviors, such as reasoning, planning, and creativity” (definition from CNIL).

The era of virtual assistants: chatbots

Do you have a question about a product from an e-commerce site?

Welcome to the era of chatbots! This computer program allows communication with you in writing or orally.

Its goal? To answer your questions. It gives the impression that you are chatting with a human being.

Does this ring a bell?

These conversational agents existed long before the arrival of Internet, as incredible as it may seem. The first chatbot was born in 1966 and was named Eliza.

She imitated the behavior of a psychotherapist. She simply detected a keyword to respond to patients.

In 1997, a new advancement. Deep Blue, a machine learning*, beats chess champion Kasparov.

In the 2000s, the emergence of data and Big data heralds the era of massive datasets (text, photos, videos), essential to AI.

2011: arrival of Siri, the voice assistant of the iPhone, followed by Alexa with Amazon.

*Machine learning: data sets that allow computer programs to learn on their own.

ChatGPT, the super chatbot

2023... The announcement created a bombshell in the world. An improved version of chatbots is made available to the public!

Artificial intelligence enters through the front door.

The most famous conversational agent is named ChatGPT. It was created by OpenAI, a company co-founded by Elon Musk, in 2015.

Therefore, it took about twenty years for ChatGPT to come into existence.

Normal, as it had to be fed with billions of data belonging to Big data.

To teach 175 billion parameters to ChatGPT, nothing could be simpler. The AI has supervised learning - it learns by itself from a data set - and reinforcement learning.

Web Writers and Artificial Intelligences: Friends or Enemies?

So, should we consider this AI as a friend we can rely on? As an enemy that needs to be monitored while waiting for better days?

And if artificial intelligence were ultimately just a nice way to value us, the web writers?

A generative AI devoid of emotions: I love you, me neither!

A computer program does not possess human emotions, except in science fiction books. An AI is incapable of feeling joy, sadness, anger, or empathy. Does it know the smell of jasmine or freshly cut grass?

Can it discern the difference between the taste of strawberries or pears? Does it feel the wind in its hair or the touch of a child's hand? No, of course not!

It cannot therefore compete with a human being, who possesses an incredible range of feelings. These are essential for making writings more vivid and conveying emotions.

And let's not forget that those who will read this digital content are... humans.

An AI fed with the existing: an eternal recycling

Another good piece of news for the web writer. AI feeds on the existing... content on the Web: the good and the bad, the false and the true. And what about the sources of Big data, these mega datasets that fuel artificial intelligence? They are provided by GAFAM or Big Five (Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft), which are all... American!

Do you see where we are going? Furthermore, the top three internet users (and who also feed Big data) come, unsurprisingly, from China, India, and the USA.

The information in AI is mostly linked to countries outside France. With a culture and traditions that sometimes diverge, if not oppose, our beliefs.

An AI devoid of creativity... and initiative

Fed with the existing, artificial intelligence is thus incapable of creating a work that does not exist. In contrast to the human being who is endowed with creativity. The AI will therefore incessantly recycle what it finds on the Web, like Sisyphus.

Furthermore, AI is a computer program. It must follow strict instructions and adhere to well-defined rules. It cannot step outside the box.

Some AIs, however, use algorithms that generate random results.

However, they create works using the existing content on the Web and not thanks to their originality and emotions. Let’s remember that unique content is crucial for improving one’s organic SEO, which AI still does not enable.

And can we trust the data of artificial intelligence?

How can we know if AIs provide us with good information?

They can indeed give us absurd results or make mistakes: when they do not understand the question or cannot find the answer.

Let’s not forget that an AI is here to provide us with a result, whatever it may be!

You will thus need to verify all its sources! And verification takes time. What you gain in writing, you will lose in checking its information.

Moreover, good SEO web writers know this. When writing, one must use primary sources. That is, data that is reliable and firsthand. Try Bing's AI, you will be surprised!

What if the answer ultimately came from Google's regulations?

To address the widespread use of content produced by AI, Google has decided to react by updating its algorithm, Helpful Content. The search engine indeed advocates, and this is not new, for original and quality content!

Writings that are far from what AI produces!

Thus, articles generated by humans may come out ahead against AI data.

Web Writer and AI: A Necessary Technological Adaptation

If the web writer gains ground over AI, it does not mean they can rest on their laurels! Indeed, with the arrival of AI, the profession of web writer is bound to evolve.

Why?

Because AI allows for a considerable time savings on texts that do not require creativity. The big winners in AI will thus be writers who produce quality texts and know SEO inside out.

Who bring value!

To face AI, it is better to know how to use it. Those who remain in the race will be those who use AI wisely, integrating good practices. Artificial intelligence serves as an assistant for repetitive tasks.

Thus, the web writer assisted by AI can focus on what is essential: original content that adds real value, not forgetting copywriting and of course SEO. In short, high-fashion writers!

The future belongs to the bold, to the craftsmen of content writing allied with AI.

This in order to automate repetitive tasks to devote oneself to nobler works.

Let’s view the arrival of artificial intelligence as a future evolution opportunity for our digital professions: more time to create tailor-made texts with a SEO strategy.

The web writer will use AI to gain efficiency and focus on the more creative parts.

Thus, only good writers, those who produce quality content, will survive.

An excellent piece of news, therefore, for communication professions.

Check out all our articles on Web Writing.