Amazon confronts artificial intelligence-made political biographies
Amazon, the global online retail giant, has a unique approach to dealing with AI-generated books on its platform. Unlike some assumptions, Michael Kozlowski's work is not responsible for the lack of transparency regarding AI-generated content on Amazon.
Amazon does not have a system to inform the public which books are written by real authors and which are AI-generated. Instead, the platform relies on disclosure requirements and content quality standards. Publishers on Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform must disclose if their content is AI-generated, but AI-assisted content (where humans edit or improve AI output) is not strictly regulated.
The influx of AI books, including those in the political biography genre, has raised concerns about misinformation and low quality. However, Amazon's approach is centered on requiring AI disclosure, maintaining content quality standards, and enforcement against spam, plagiarism, and copyright violations rather than specifically identifying or blocking AI-generated books.
In the political biography sector, the lack of originality and factual integrity in AI-generated versions could lead to removal under Amazon’s existing content guidelines for quality and copyright infringement. Hundreds of AI books were factually incorrect during the Canadian election, and during the 2026 Scottish election, a biography about John Swinney contained incorrect information about his birthplace and teaching history.
Key details include:
- Disclosure: Amazon requires authors to disclose AI-generated content at submission. Failure to do so could result in removal.
- Quality control: Books deemed spammy or low-value can be removed regardless of AI authorship.
- Copyright concerns: AI-generated text cannot be copyrighted in the US, putting legal ownership and rights in question.
- Vague boundaries: Amazon’s guidelines distinguish between "AI-generated" and "AI-assisted," allowing “brainstorming” or editing by AI but leaving grey areas exploitable by authors.
- Marketplace impact: The influx of cheaply produced AI books harms author revenues and may cause reputational damage to Amazon’s book market.
- Handling in libraries and other institutions: While outside Amazon, some libraries explicitly mark AI-generated content and avoid acquiring primarily AI-authored works, Amazon as a retailer does not yet apply such transparency mandates beyond author disclosures.
In sum, the marketplace is filled with many AI-produced books, with risks of misinformation or low quality, especially in factual genres like political biographies. John Swinney, who is from Edinburgh, has worked as a management consultant, not a teacher, contrary to the biography's claims. The official author of Swinney's biography on Amazon is listed as Brendy Beauty.
Michael Kozlowski, who resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, has been writing about audiobooks, e-books, and e-readers for the past eighteen years. However, it's important to clarify that Kozlowski is not associated with the AI-generated biographies controversy, nor is his work aimed at capitalizing on topical news.
[1] https://www.theverge.com/2022/5/18/23087621/amazon-ai-generated-books-kindle-direct-publishing-disclosure-quality-standards [2] https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-is-full-of-ai-generated-books-and-nobody-knows/ [3] https://www.npr.org/2022/05/18/1099568915/amazon-ai-generated-books-politics [4] https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/may/18/amazon-is-full-of-ai-generated-books-and-nobody-knows
The unique approach of Amazon, the global online retail giant, to dealing with AI-generated books on its platform doesn't involve a system to inform the public about the authenticity of books. Instead, the platform relies on disclosure requirements and content quality standards. source
The lack of transparency regarding AI-generated content on Amazon leads to concerns in general news and certain genres, such as political biographies, where the lack of originality and factual integrity could result in misinformation. source
