Sci-fi publisher Clarkesworld halts pitches amid deluge of AI-generated stories

One of the most prestigious publishers of science fiction short stories has closed itself to submissions after a deluge of AI-generated pitches overwhelmed its editorial team.

Clarkesworld, which has published writers including Jeff VanderMeer, Yoon Ha Lee and Catherynne Valente, is one of the few paying publishers to accept open submissions for short stories from new writers.

In a typical month, the magazine would normally receive 10 or so such submissions that were deemed to have plagiarised other authors, he wrote in a blogpost. But since the release of ChatGPT last year pushed AI language models into the mainstream, the rate of rejections has rocketed.

Closing submissions is a drastic move. Until a solution is identified, the magazine is not considering stories from authors.

Generative AI technology is also causing unrest further afield than fiction circles.