Prix Goncourt drops novelist over AI authorship claims
France's top literary prize removed Thélyson Orélien's debut novel from its longlist after an anonymous account accused him of writing it largely with AI, which he denies.
The Prix Goncourt academy dropped Canadian-Haitian novelist Thélyson Orélien's debut, "It Was Either That or Die," from its longlist on Friday. The book was, in the academy's words, "in all likelihood, very largely the product of artificial intelligence," France 24 reported.
The allegations came from an account called Balance ton Claude, or Expose Your Claude. French essayist Samuel Fitoussi later said he was part of the collective behind it. Fitoussi told France 24 he acted because he feared AI "will cause the disappearance of reading."
Orélien, 38, denied the allegations. He said he is assembling evidence to prove he wrote the novel himself, and has suggested the campaign against him carries racial motives. He told the newspaper Libération, "I've always loved creating and writing, I don't see why I would use a machine."
The academy said the removal was meant to protect the prize's integrity. Orélien's Canadian publisher, Boréal, told France 24 it has paused promotional activity for the book but said it can neither confirm nor refute the AI claims.