Grammarly has disabled a controversial AI feature that imitated the style of prominent writers and academics, following a backlash and a multimillion-dollar lawsuit. The feature, called Expert Review, used generative AI to produce feedback supposedly inspired by authors including Stephen King, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and the late Carl Sagan.
A class-action lawsuit has been filed in the southern district of New York against Superhuman, Grammarly’s parent company. The lawsuit argues that using a person’s name for commercial gain without permission is unlawful, seeking damages in excess of $5m (£3.7m). Investigative journalist Julia Angwin, the lead plaintiff, said she had not considered that her editing skill could be stolen.
Several writers have spoken out against the feature. Tech journalist Casey Newton described it as “a deliberate choice to monetise the identities of real people without involving them”. Vanessa Heggie, an associate professor at the University of Birmingham, noted that fellow academic David Abulafia, who died in January, was included, calling it “obscene”.
Superhuman’s chief executive, Shishir Mehrotra, apologised in a LinkedIn post, acknowledging the company “fell short”. He told the BBC that Expert Review was taken down for a redesign before the claim was filed, and that it had “very little usage”. However, he said the legal claims are “without merit” and will be “strongly defended against”.
