We Test Drove Two AI Writing Apps
We’re regularly taking new apps for a test drive to see if we can bring more value to our clients. If we can use technology to offer better results for the same or less money, then we will.
Over the past couple of years, we’ve been following advances in Artificial Intelligence. It’s already clear that computers are becoming more and more capable of taking over even the most complex tasks. We have self-driving cars today and the auto industry tells us it won’t be long before these new vehicles will be everywhere. The great promise there is vastly increased safety. What happens to the auto insurance industry when there are no more collisions?
We also know that AI can write like a human. AI generated poems and novels and even music have proven to be as lovely as anything a human can produce.
Our day to day work involves doing an awful lot of writing. We write blog posts. We write social media posts. We write newsletters and news releases and backgrounders and scripts and speeches.
What if a computer could help us write for our clients? Can we generate more posts for blogs and social platforms? Can we deliver more and better content and enhance our clients’ marketing while keeping costs the same (or even lowering them)?
To answer those questions, we recently took two AI writing apps for short test drives – Articoolo and Article Forge.
While we see tremendous potential for this kind of app, it’s clear that neither is quite ready to take on the heavy lifting of writing engaging, knowledgeable content. At best, they are engines that can provide adequate first drafts on general subject matter. But for a competent, experienced writer, I would argue that you can probably crank out four or five better paragraphs in the time it will take you to edit the stuff coming from the robot.
I’ll give you an example. We write blogs and manage the social media for some dental clinics. We’re currently researching a post about wisdom teeth. So we logged into our demo account at Article Forge, entered keywords “Wisdom Teeth” and “Growth”. Here’s what we got:
Wisdom teeth are a really bothersome issue when you have them and that is why most people do not get to see their dentist regularly. But, as long as you know what to look for in your wisdom teeth or those that are developing, you should be able to treat your problem in the most effective way possible. One of the signs that your wisdom teeth are outgrowing your mouth is if you can not close your mouth properly, you can swallow or talk properly. Other symptoms include tooth sensitivity, bleeding between the teeth and pain when chewing or speaking.
You should also take note of the growth pattern of your teeth and evaluate whether you have increased or decreased pain as a result of the growth. If you have an increased pain in the area, you need to see your dentist immediately to get rid of the problem. If the pain is fairly consistent, you may have an issue with wisdom teeth that is too advanced for treatment. In this case, you should not worry about a simple overgrowth because they will eventually grow out and heal.
One of the first steps you can take in the treatment of your wisdom teeth is by maintaining healthy oral hygiene. This means you should brush your teeth twice daily, floss every day and visit your dentist for regular cleanings. You can also get a set of tools that can help you clean your teeth daily, including a teeth pick and a mouthwash. By using these tools regularly, you can easily decrease the amount of pain you feel while chewing or talking. In addition, you will be able to keep your gums healthy and prevent cavities that can occur with healthy gums.
We ran similar requests using slight variations on keywords, but they all came back in much the same fashion. The results aren’t ready for prime time. It’s written like a high school student who doesn’t really know his subject is trying to stretch his word count. We concede that it’s possible these services might be perfectly suitable to generate content about common subject matter. Short social posts are probably more in the scope of work. It’s hard to imagine how they could write a good ‘how to’ on any subject though.
We write this not to disparage these companies. We applaud them. We’ll be keeping a close eye on them – and will search out others – and plan to be adopters if they can continue to refine their service.
For our purposes though, where we’re writing on behalf of medical professionals, lawyers, accountants and others, it’s clear that these particular AI apps aren’t capable of spitting out interesting articles that tackle complex subjects.
