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AI for Impact Newsletter: Navigating the World of AI-Assisted Writing

In today’s rapidly evolving technological landscape, AI-assisted writing tools have emerged as powerful allies for creators, researchers, educators, and professionals across various fields. As I explore the intersection of artificial intelligence and writing, I believe it’s essential to understand both the transformative potential and ethical considerations that come with these tools.

The Rise of AI-Assisted Writing

AI writing assistants have bloomed in recent years, revolutionizing how content creation happens. These tools, powered by large language models (LLMs), offer remarkable capabilities in natural language processing, data analysis, and decision-making. Writers across the globe are increasingly incorporating AI into their workflows, with adoption spanning over 25+ languages and diverse professional contexts.

The appeal is clear: AI helps users diversify ideas while keeping writing clear and concise-and accomplishes this more quickly than traditional methods. Contrary to popular belief, recent research shows that practicing writing with AI tools can actually enhance, rather than hinder, skill development. For example, a 2023 study published in Science found that participants who practiced writing with AI improved more on subsequent writing tests compared to those who practiced without AI, despite exerting less effort.

Benefits of AI-Assisted Writing

Enhanced Efficiency and Quality:
AI writing assistants provide faster responses and more consistent quality compared to traditional writing methods. They can help streamline the writing process by generating drafts, suggesting improvements, and offering alternative phrasings. For changemakers and social entrepreneurs with limited resources, this efficiency can be particularly valuable, allowing more energy to be focused on core missions while still producing high-quality content.

Learning and Skill Development:
Rather than replacing human skills, AI tools can serve as effective learning aids. As someone deeply committed to education and skill-building, I’ve observed how these tools can help people improve their writing abilities through immediate feedback and suggestions. They can be particularly empowering for non-native speakers or those who struggle with written expression, democratizing access to effective communication.

Accessibility and Inclusion:
AI writing tools can make content creation more accessible to people with disabilities or those who face barriers to traditional writing methods. For example, LaMPost is a prototype email editor specifically designed to support adults with dyslexia, featuring AI-powered writing assistance like outlining main ideas, generating subject lines, suggesting changes, and rewriting selections.

My Personal AI Writing Workflow

Over time, I’ve developed different approaches to using AI writing tools depending on the context and purpose:

• For Social Media Content: I often start with AI to generate initial ideas and draft posts, then heavily edit to ensure they match my voice and perspective. This approach helps me maintain a consistent presence across platforms while saving valuable time.

• For Our Newsletter: I typically start with AI to generate a first draft based on our topic and key points, then sometimes apply substantial human editing to ensure it reflects our organization’s values, voice, and expertise. This hybrid approach allows us to produce consistent, high-quality content efficiently while maintaining our authentic perspective.

• For Policy Documents and Professional Writing: I prefer to draft these completely myself first, capturing my authentic expertise and perspective. Then I use AI tools selectively for language improvements, editing, and ensuring clarity. It can be amazing and sometimes also for restructuring.

Challenges and Ethical Considerations

Authenticity and Originality:
One of the most significant concerns I hear from my network of changemakers is about maintaining authenticity when using AI tools. There’s a legitimate fear that over-reliance on AI might lead to homogenized content lacking the unique perspectives and lived experiences that make social impact work so powerful. The key is finding a balance where AI enhances rather than replaces your authentic voice.

Accuracy and Bias:
AI models can perpetuate existing biases present in their training data. For those of us working in social impact, this is particularly concerning as we strive to create more equitable systems. It’s crucial to critically evaluate AI-generated content and be aware of potential biases, especially when addressing sensitive social issues or representing marginalized communities. For more, see "On the Dangers of Stochastic Parrots".

Dependency and Skill Erosion:
There’s a risk that overreliance on AI tools could lead to a decline in fundamental writing skills. I believe it’s important to use these tools as supplements rather than substitutes for developing core communication abilities. The goal should be to leverage AI while continuing to cultivate our own critical thinking and creative expression.

Environmental Impact:
Training and running large AI models requires significant computational resources and energy. For those committed to environmental sustainability, it’s worth considering the carbon footprint of these tools and advocating for more energy-efficient AI development. Read more in "Energy and Policy Considerations for Deep Learning in NLP".

AI Writing Tools for Impact Professionals

The landscape of AI writing tools is diverse and growing rapidly. Here are some tools that I’ve found particularly valuable for impact-focused work:

• ChatGPT: Excellent for brainstorming, outlining, and refining ideas.

• Wordtune: Offers multiple rewriting options including casual, formal, shortened, and expanded versions of your text.

• Lex.page: A minimalist AI writing environment designed specifically for long-form writing.

• Effidit: An intelligent writing assistant that goes beyond error checking to help users write higher-quality text more efficiently.

• Elicit: An AI research assistant that helps you find relevant papers, extract key information, and summarize findings.

• Consensus: Searches and synthesizes findings across scientific research.

• Perplexity AI: Combines search capabilities with AI synthesis to help research complex topics with citations.

• Connected Papers: Creates visual graphs of academic literature, helping identify influential works and research gaps.

• LexNLP: An open-source Python package focused on natural language processing for legal and regulatory texts.

• Wordcraft: A collaborative editor for creative writing projects.

• Hemingway Editor: Focuses on readability, highlighting complex sentences and suggesting simplifications.

• Grammarly: Beyond grammar checking, its tone detector and engagement metrics can help tailor communications for different stakeholders.

Are We Getting Smarter, Lazier, or Dumber with AI Writing Tools?

This question has been at the center of heated debates among educators, writers, and technologists. The evidence suggests a nuanced reality:

The Case for “Smarter”:
Recent research, such as the Science study, challenges the assumption that AI writing tools make us intellectually lazy. Using AI for writing practice can actually improve independent writing abilities, with AI serving as a coach that helps writers develop their skills through modeling and feedback.

The Case for “Lazier”:
There are legitimate concerns about cognitive offloading-the tendency to rely on external tools rather than exercising our own mental faculties. When we habitually outsource thinking tasks to AI, we might develop patterns of intellectual dependence. "The Reliability Paradox" explores how excessive reliance on digital tools can reduce effort in information processing and retention. However, “laziness” might be better reframed as “efficiency.” Throughout history, humans have developed tools to reduce cognitive load-from writing itself to calculators and search engines. AI writing tools represent the next evolution in this process.

The Case for “Dumber”:
Some educators worry that AI writing tools might interfere with the development of critical writing skills, especially among students. Writing is not just about producing text but about clarifying thought-a process that requires struggle and iteration. There’s also concern about what linguist Emily Bender calls "stochastic parrots"-AI systems that can produce fluent text without understanding or meaning.

A Balanced Perspective:
The most likely outcome is neither intellectual enhancement nor degradation but transformation. How AI affects our cognitive abilities depends largely on how we use it. Used thoughtfully-as a collaborative tool rather than a replacement for thinking-AI writing assistants can enhance our capabilities while preserving the essential human elements of writing.

Resources for Ethical AI Writing

For those looking to deepen their understanding of AI writing tools and their ethical use, here are some valuable resources:

• "Co-Writing with Opinionated Language Models Affects Users' Views": Explores how AI writing assistants can subtly influence the opinions expressed in co-created content.

• "Seeking Authenticity in Co-Writing with Large Language Models": Investigates how writers maintain authenticity when collaborating with AI tools.

• "Holding the Line: A Study of Writers' Attitudes on Co-creativity with AI": Examines how different types of writers approach collaboration with AI across various writing stages.

• "Towards AI-assisted Academic Writing": Explores specialized tools for academic writing, including citation assistance and structured introduction generation.

• "Ai.llude: Encouraging Rewriting AI-Generated Text to Support Creative Expression": Examines how intermediate AI suggestions can motivate writers to engage in more creative rewriting.

Looking Forward: AI Writing in the Impact Sector

As AI writing tools continue to evolve, I see tremendous potential for the social impact sector. These tools can help resource-constrained organizations amplify their messages, create more accessible content, and focus more energy on their core mission rather than administrative tasks.

However, the human elements of empathy, lived experience, and authentic connection remain irreplaceable. The most powerful impact narratives will continue to come from the heart and mind of human changemakers, even if AI helps polish the presentation.

For those in my network working to create positive change, I encourage you to approach AI writing tools with both enthusiasm and critical awareness. Experiment with how they can enhance your work while staying true to your unique voice and values. The future of writing isn’t about choosing between human or AI-it’s about thoughtful integration that amplifies our human capacity for creativity, connection, and change.

I’d love to hear your experiences with AI writing tools in your impact work. What’s working? What challenges are you facing? Feel free to respond to this message and/or fill out the survey below.

This post was generated in perplexity with about 95% ai generated (with lots of prompting) and 3-5% human editing.

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