On Monday, Turnitin, a widely used software by educators to identify plagiarism in student papers, announced the integration of “AI detection capabilities” into its system. This development comes at a time when artificial intelligence platforms like ChatGPT are experiencing a surge in popularity.
Turnitin can detect “the use of AI writing tools including ChatGPT, with 98 percent confidence,” it said in a press release.
“Educators told us that being able to accurately detect AI written text is their first priority right now,” CEO Chris Caren said. “It is equally important that detection technology becomes a seamless part of their existing workflow, which we have done by integrating AI detection capabilities into Turnitin solutions.”
Turnitin says the technology to detect GPT3, which is used in AI technologies including ChatGPT, has been in the works at the company for more than two years.
“Turnitin’s AI detector provides an evaluative measure of how many sentences in a written submission may have been generated by artificial intelligence, which educators can use to determine if further review, inquiry or discussion with the student is needed,” it said.
The integration of AI in educational technology has sparked mixed reactions among K-12 and higher education teachers. While some are eager to embrace the benefits of AI, others are concerned about its potential to facilitate cheating. ChatGPT, in particular, has generated significant attention among educators.
However, Turnitin believes that the addition of AI detection capabilities will immediately benefit the 2.1 million educators who use their software to detect plagiarism. To assist educators in navigating academic integrity policies in the age of AI, Turnitin has also launched an AI writing resource page, which will be updated with the latest advancements in AI writing capabilities.
The creators of ChatGPT have already made improvements to their software, just six months after its public release. It is anticipated that AI technology will continue to advance and transform the educational landscape.