Science fiction writers say goodbye to AI at Comic-Con

In recent months, some major players in science fiction and popular culture have taken stronger stances against generative AI.

Separate decisions by San Diego Comic-Con and the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) demonstrate the depth of opposition to AI in some creative communities — not only that, but music distribution platform Bandcamp also recently banned generative AI.

This happened in December when the SFWA announced updates to the Nebula Award rules. While works written solely using large language models would be ineligible, authors who used LLM “at any point in the writing process” would now have to disclose their use, and award voters could now make their own decisions about whether their use influenced their support.

As Jason Sanford reported in his Genre Grapevine Newsletter, this change sparked an immediate backlash as it appeared to open the door to works created in part by LLMs. SFWA’s board apologized days later, writing: “Our approach and language were wrong and we apologize for the pain and distrust we have caused.”

The rules have been revised again to state that “works written in whole or in part with generative large-scale language model (LLM) tools are not eligible for the Nebula Awards” and that works in which LLM was used at any point in their creation will be disqualified.

In a subsequent post, Sanford said he was glad SFWA was listening to its members and refused to use Gen AI to write his novel. “Not just because of this theft, but also because the tool is actually uncreative and defeats the whole point of storytelling.” Still, he wrote, important questions need to be answered about how broadly defined the use of LLM is, especially since “these generative AI products are being forced on everyone by big companies.”

“If you’ve been using an online search engine or computer product lately, chances are you’re using one powered by or connected to an LLM,” Sanford says. “Thus, writers who use word processors and research tools with LLM components must be careful to avoid being unfairly disqualified from awards like Nebulas, or exposed to attacks from readers and other writers.”

The annual San Diego Comic-Con faced a similar controversy this month after artists discovered a rule allowing them to display (but not sell) AI-generated art at the convention’s art show. Following complaints from artists, the rules were quietly changed to state that “material created in part or in whole by artificial intelligence (AI) is not allowed in art shows.”

Comic-Con’s apology was not as public as SFWA, but some artists shared an email response from art show director Glenn Wooten, who said the previous rule had been in place for “several years” and was effective as a deterrent since no one was allowing AI-generated art into the show.

“But this issue is becoming more and more of an issue, and we need to say it louder. No! Plain and simple,” Wooten was quoted as saying.

It’s probably safe to assume that other organizations will announce similar hardline stances this year, and that these communities will continue to debate larger issues.