Young Entrepreneur Develops AI Detection Tool to Combat Disinformation and Save Journalism

A 22-year-old Princeton student, Edward Tian, developed an app called GPTZero to deter the misuse of ChatGPT in classrooms and secured $3.5 million in funding to launch Origin, a program aimed at distinguishing AI-generated disinformation from fact in online media. The tool, which has a 99% accuracy rate for human text and 85% for AI text, is now being explored for partnerships with large media organizations like the BBC and The New York Times.

Tian's team seeks to empower journalism and expand the technology's use in trust-and-safety, government, copyright, finance, and law sectors. The rise of AI-generated content is challenging the definition of plagiarism and academic honesty, and the limitations of current detection tools make it difficult for educators to take decisive action. While some argue that open-sourcing AI detection tools promotes innovation, others warn it may make them more prone to exploitation.