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A new British venture is taking aim at the increasing trend of AI-created publications, introducing an program to verify and label human-authored works.

Organic Literature Certification Program

Human Authors Collective has unveiled an “Organic Literature” certification, collaborating with an initial selection of independent publishing houses.

The scheme will involve Natural Writing stamps being affixed on books written by people, with only restricted AI assistance allowed for functions such as layout or brainstorming.

International Growth Intentions

The company, founded by antiquarian books specialist Esme Dennys together with Conrad Young and Gavin Johnston, stated it plans to grow worldwide in 2026.

The first accredited book will be Telenovela by Gonzalo C Garcia, publishing this November by one founding partner. Other partners comprise Snowbooks.

“This program is incredibly important for publishing houses, for authors and, most importantly, for the audience. It is simultaneously a seal of quality and an assurance of the shared humanity that we seek in literature.

“I’m very proud to be the publisher who will have the first stamp – and it feels very fitting that that stamp should go on Telenovela, a book about the struggle for honesty and against authoritarianism.”

Accreditation Procedure

Publishing houses can qualify through adherence to the program’s criteria and annual spot checks. Costs will differ depending on the quantity of books produced each year.

Sector Background

The launch comes at a time of heightened tension between the creative industries and artificial intelligence firms. Earlier this year, an AI firm settled to pay $1.5bn to writers who accused the company of using pirated copies of their books to develop its chatbot.

Efforts to highlight human artistry are gaining traction. In August, a major publisher used a “human-authored” sticker to copies of Sarah Hall’s Helm. At the time, the publisher’s chief Mary Cannam stated the publisher’s logo “continues to signify this human-written provenance”.

Industry Examination

The launch also coincides with increasing scrutiny of AI-generated content on online retailers such as major online stores, which experts have cautioned remain a “wild west” due to the lack of regulation around AI-generated texts, and that dangerous misinformation could spread as a consequence.

Industry Response

Dan Conway, Chief Executive of the publishing trade body, applauded voluntary efforts to emphasize human creation but said the sector was not currently advocating compulsory marking.

“As the industry body it’s critical that we continue to support publishing houses and writers in standing up for human artistry and analytical thought,” he added, adding that the association is encouraging e-commerce sites like Amazon to take more decisive measures against “low-quality AI-generated material”.