OpenAI has a method to reliably detect when someone uses ChatGPT to write an essay or research paper. The company hasn’t released it despite widespread concerns about students using artificial intelligence to cheat. The project has been mired in internal debate at OpenAI for roughly two years and has been ready to be released for about a year, according to people familiar with the matter and internal documents viewed by The Wall Street Journal. “It’s just a matter of pressing a button,” one of the people said. In trying to decide what to do, OpenAI employees have wavered between the startup’s stated commitment to transparency and their desire to attract and retain users. One survey the company conducted of loyal ChatGPT users found nearly a third would be turned off by the anticheating technology. An OpenAI spokeswoman said the company is concerned the tool could disproportionately affect groups such as non-native English speakers. “The text watermarking method we’re developing is technically promising but has important risks we’re weighing while we research alternatives,” she said. “We believe the deliberate approach we’ve taken is necessary given the complexities involved and its likely impact on the broader ecosystem beyond OpenAI.” Employees who support the tool’s release, including those who helped develop it, have said internally those arguments pale compared with the good such technology could do.Generative AI can create an entire essay or research paper in a matter of seconds, based on a single prompt, free. Teachers and professors say they are desperate for help to crack down on its misuse. “It’s a huge issue,” said Alexa Gutterman, a high school English and journalism teacher in New York City. “It’s something that every teacher I work with has talked about.”

Full report : OpenAI developed a watermarking method for detecting text written by ChatGPT with 99.9% reliability, but its launch has been mired in internal debates.