Thélyson Orélien's book removed from the Goncourt Prize selection for alleged use of AI

It was that or dying is "in all likelihood the product of artificial intelligence", according to the Académie Goncourt, which announced on Friday September 25 the withdrawal of Thélyson Orélien's book from the selection for the Goncourt prize. An exceptional decision, taken even before the second selection, scheduled for October 6. In Paris, readers and booksellers remain perplexed by this withdrawal.

In front of this Parisian bookstore, Sophie could have been tempted by It Was That or Die. This great reader is waiting for the controversy to die down. "The solitary writer doesn't necessarily exist. Whether he is helped by an AI tool, if he remains in control, I'm interested to see how he proceeds. Afterwards, if it's purely generated by AI and it's a mush, that won't interest me."

“It will spark debate with customers”

It is still too early to say whether the withdrawal of Goncourt affects customers. This bookseller has just sold a copy. “I don’t mind using modern tools to create,” she admits. Lacking indubitable evidence, she continues to recommend the book. "The subject is interesting. I really liked this book. I assume that I will present it and suggest it. Afterwards, I am open to discussion. In fact, I think that it will spark debate with clients and there is no problem in discussing it," she concludes.

Because for now, writing a book with AI is a deception. For Lucile Deaunard, of the L'Écailler bookstore, the problem is broader. "In place of editors, we put people who come out of business schools, who know nothing about books. Who is at the head of the publishing houses? Who does the correction? We find more and more typos, errors, syntax in all the books that are published. Shouldn't the question be asked at this level, rather than shooting at an author?" Readers and booksellers are in any case wondering about the speed with which the book was removed from the Goncourt selection.