AI text detectors are showing up everywhere, scanning essays, emails, and social media posts to catch machine-written content. But how well can they actually spot a bot? While these tools often get it right, they’re far from foolproof, sparking a growing debate about their real reliability.

Could you tell that the above paragraph was written by ChatGPT? If not, you’re not alone; only three of the 10 online detector tools we fed that passage to (along with some more AI output to give it a fairer chance) successfully flagged it as a high probability of AI output. Another two guessed it was mixed, and five found no evidence of AI.

(Editor’s note: Tech Brew would never publish an AI-written lede were it not to prove a point. The reporter noted it took much honing and back-and-forth to generate something serviceable.)

Since ChatGPT first thrust text generators into the mainstream almost two years ago, a cottage industry of tools has promised to suss out AI-generated text. Educators, platform moderators, editors, and hiring managers have turned to these models in hopes of restoring a semblance of order amid an onslaught of AI-generated student essays, social media posts, book submissions, and other mass-produced copy.

But the capabilities of these tools can vary widely. A paper earlier this year from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that many text detectors are exaggerating their prowess. Rather than the claims of up to 99% accuracy that some of these tool creators make, the research found that performance often fluctuates depending on the type of text and the model used to produce it.

Error rates might be acceptable in certain contexts, but false positives can be ruinous in education, where students can face baseless accusations of cheating because of faulty detection.

Keep reading here.—PK

Scott Tobin, CEO of software consulting firm Envorso, has a message for automotive executives amid their retreat from electric vehicles: Don’t slow down on software development.

“The software progression has to continue despite what your EV plans do,” Tobin told Tech Brew during a Reuters automotive conference in Detroit in October.

Envorso helps companies navigate the industry’s ongoing transformation around software, something Tobin is very familiar with after spending decades working on vehicle development at Ford.

The way software is being used in vehicles is rapidly changing. Today’s vehicles might have over 100 electronic control modules, or ECUs, responsible for functions like rolling down windows or locking doors, backed by millions of lines of code and held together by vast amounts of wiring. Tobin refers to this system as a “spaghetti mess.”

“There’s products out there that are like that and they’re good. You could do it,” he said. “But I could also cut the grass with scissors.”

Now, automakers are placing big bets on software-defined vehicles, which can be continuously upgraded as new capabilities become available. Tobin worries, however, that delays on electrification could prompt some automakers to lose momentum on software, as these two advancements have been closely linked.

Keep reading here.—JG

With the end of the year looming, the EV market has a milestone in its sights: reaching 10% of the new-vehicle market.

Sales of battery-electric, plug-in hybrid, and hybrid vehicles once again appeared to be strong for numerous automakers in October, according to industry reports, and experts say that all-electric vehicles now consistently make up over 8% of sales. And overall, despite supply-chain disruptions tied to extreme weather events, last month the auto industry appeared on track to achieve double-digit YoY sales growth.

S&P Global Mobility estimated that October sales would increase 11% YoY and that BEVs’ market share would remain above 9%.

“Assisted by the sustained rollouts of vehicles such as the Chevrolet Equinox EV and Honda Prologue and to be followed by new BEVs such as the Polestar 3, Jeep Wagoneer S, and Volkswagen ID. Buzz slated for release in the fourth quarter,” according to the firm’s forecast, “electric vehicle sales are expected to advance over the remainder of the year.”

Let’s dig into results from the automakers that report sales on a monthly basis.

Keep reading here.—JG