Some Educational Institutions Don’t Trust A.I. Detectors

Some experts contend that AI detection software isn’t as reliable as other, older services that call out plagiarists – and that false positives in an AI scan can even harm a student’s academic career. The software itself could even be somewhat biased, relative to what it only thinks is AI-written. For example, a study last year found that seven AI-detecting tools returned a 61% false positive rate when reviewing exams that test non-native English speakers who were applying to colleges. That study didn’t include the company Turnitin, a leader in the field, which claims its false positives rate is around 1%. Some colleges, such as Vanderbilt, Northwestern, and Montclair have told educators to stop using an AI detector entirely.