I nspired by writers on the Internet I respect, I am including an AI disclosure page on my site.

TLDR; I write the words on the page and use AI to help organize the way the words appear.

I am still trying to figure out what kind of AI use feels honest for me. I believe if you are taking time to review words I have put to the digital page, you should be aware of the tools and techniques I use.

I do not like reading text generated by AI. I do not want to present an AI’s output as my thoughts either. The prose on this site is largely written by me. A few exceptions exist on older posts where I experimented with AI assisted writing. The experiment has concluded and I have decided AI generated text is not something I want to pass off as my own.

Code and site infrastructure

The code used for this site is AI-assisted. When I write code that is used to render pages on this site, I use LLMs. Primarily, Claude Code. The process I follow is I write a list of goals for the task and then have AI review my goals and ask questions about how I want to implement them. As I answer the questions, I provide code samples or ask for guidance on how to implement something. After providing answers, I invoke the AI to help implement the plan. For example, I used Claude Code to help me develop the Riso-blobs in the drop caps and the blobs on the page. I came up with the idea I wanted and how I wanted it to look. I found code for generating random blob shapes shared on CodePen. I copied that code and tweaked it to use gradients and repeat three times like a risograph printer. Then I passed the code over to the LLM to help randomize the shape and offset of each layer. I struggled to get the three blobs to render with a transparent background. Claude code helped troubleshoot what was happening with the path clipping and enabled me to identify that using a union of all three layers would allow me to clip the outline of the generated blobs outline. Finally, I use Claude Code to audit how accessible the site is. I check contrast, typography, and html tags. Then I update the code so my site is accessible to the widest audience possible. I do not want a poor screen reader experience to prevent someone from engaging with my ideas.

Writing

Writing is an exercise in thinking for me. It is how I work out ideas and sharpen my thoughts. I use a mix of tools to help me write. I am aware that some of those tools use LLMs. Others may use LLms. Either way, I use tools to check spelling and prose but not thoughts. I think commercial LLMs are configured to engage and agree which can warp the way I process ideas. When writing I look at their output the way I view T9 predictive texting. I may accept a single suggestion but after accepting one or two, the suggestions veer in a direction I do not want to go. The tools I use to write have AI embedded in them. Whether it is a spell checker, prose linter, or thought organizer, I use them to help me turn ideas into words. I do not find the need to use LLMs for generating ideas.

Why Have an AI Disclosure Page?

Ultimately I include this page to promote trust and transparency between the writer and the reader. I have been trying to figure out what tasks AI can help me with to get my ideas into the world. I think the ideas are good enough! Having help presenting them is great.

Questions are welcome. For information about how to reach out see my about page.

AI Disclosure Examples

I was first introduced to the idea of an AI disclosure page by Derek Sivers which was inspired by Damola Morenikeji’s manifesto.