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Royal irony alert!
One of Meghan Markle’s humanitarian projects is receiving the wrong kind of attention this week, as critics have accused the duchess of using AI to write a speech in which she warns of the dangers of AI.
Curbing online harassment has long been a cause dear to Meghan’s heart, and over the weekend, she traveled to Geneva, Switzerland to attend the unveiling of the Lost Screen Memorial, honoring children who lost their lives after being bullied online.
“Children today are being shaped by systems designed to capture attention at any cost: relentless algorithms, exploitative engagement, and endless exposure to harmful content that they are not seeking out,” Meghan told the crowd (via Radar Online), adding:
“Each name belonged to a child who was loved beyond measure. A child whose laughter once filled a kitchen.
“Whose shoes once waited by a front door. Whose future once felt limitless. Now their faces ask the world questions we can no longer avoid.
“We are seeing new forms of harm emerge faster than our systems are prepared to respond, affecting children at an alarming scale and across borders.”
The Duchess of Sussex concluded her remarks by reminding the audience that destructive advances in technology need not be regarded as inevitable:
“But these outcomes are not inevitable, and prevention begins with one simple principle: children must be safe by design, not safe by chance.
“Because danger now travels globally — instantly, invisibly, intimately. And our protections must do the same.”
Critics were quick to run Meghan’s remarks through AI detection software, with many concluding that Meghan had help in writing her speech:
“There’s been a flood of commentary on forums from people insisting they ran parts of Meghan’s address through AI detection systems like ChatGPT analyzers and other large language model tools because the wording felt unusually polished, repetitive and rhythmically structured,” a source twlls Radar, adding:
“Some critics are convinced it carried the hallmarks of AI-assisted drafting, whether that came directly from Meghan herself or from advisers helping craft the speech.
“What many people find deeply ironic is that the entire appearance centered on warning about the dangers of rapidly evolving technology and artificial intelligence potentially harming society, while critics are now accusing the speech itself of sounding algorithmically generated. Fairly or unfairly, that contradiction has become a major talking point online.”
A different source noted that Meghan didn’t gain fame as a speechwriter.
Therefore, she likely had some help composing her remarks, and somewhere along the line, a digital assistant may have played a role:
“It would be extremely unusual for somebody in Meghan’s position to prepare an address like this entirely alone, especially for a global event involving the WHO,” said the second insider, adding:
“Most public figures now use some degree of technological assistance during drafting, whether that means speechwriting software, AI-assisted editing tools or communications teams refining language for impact and clarity.”
“The controversy probably says as much about public suspicion toward AI as it does about Meghan herself. But because she specifically highlighted the risks posed by artificial intelligence during the speech, critics immediately seized on the possibility that similar tools may have helped shape the message she delivered.
In all likelihood, we’re entering an age in which every competent piece of writing will be subjected suspicion of AI use.
So did Meghan have any help drafting her remarks? It’s entirely possible. But that doesn’t make the sentiment behind them any less sincere.