Despite the differences between Hive & basically any Meta owned social media platform, they're both essentially social medium - relying on users to engage with each other so that we feel seen, valued, and rewarded - whether that's by financial incentive or simply human interaction.
The complaint on Hive has always been about whether anyone reads or simply sees your post as a way to get curation rewards. That's why when 'big' or popular people on Hive often get large upvotes, as whales will come in and vote them and everyone else will follow suit, hoping to get some crumbs.
Now the complaint has a dimension added to it - two really - spam and AI content. The bottom line is that we can't do anything about either - it'll keep coming because those two things exist, coupled with the also-human desire to make money, which we have to understand.
Whether we like it or not is a different story. Ask any old timers here and the majority will say they're not even here for finanical incentive anymore - they're here for engagement. We've made friends here, enjoy writing, and love the global community on Hive. Sure, we'd be happy if Hive mooned, not gonna lie.
The human connection is important for us here.
So if you're using AI to write comments, it's just going to piss people off, and not win you any favours. If you're mechanising your content in the hope to win favours (upvotes, mostly) it certainly doesn't feel fair to those who are trying their best to interact on a social, human level.
Can You Tell If People Are Using AI to Comment?
It's harder and harder to tell whether people are using AI or not. I can usually tell, but there's also the legitimate use of Grammarly, particularly for those where English might not be their first language, and they don't want to come across as illiterate or even badly understood.
But whether you're writing in Espanol or Japanese, AI comments look the same - there's just something about them that doesn't seem human.
A human comment will often have typos because we're in a hurry. They'll usually add a personal response to an aspect of your post - something they relate to, or that's also happened to them. It'll almost never be a summary of what you've just written. And they're almost never structurally perfect.
But then, AI gets close:
Thanks for saying this so clearly. I’ve been feeling the same way lately — like there’s a growing disconnect between posts that come from a real place of wanting to connect, and the ones that feel like they were churned out just to tick boxes or catch votes. Hive has always stood out to me because of the genuine friendships and thoughtful conversations it nurtures, and it’s disheartening when that vibe gets diluted by spam or soulless AI replies. Tools like Grammarly are one thing — they help us communicate better — but when the heart goes missing from interactions, people notice. I’m here for the people, too, and comments that actually see others are what keep this place alive.
Can you tell what would raise a red flag for me here? Tell me in the comments - I don't want to give it away.
And what about this one - is this AI written?
Yeah, I get what you're saying. It’s kinda been bothering me too lately. Like the other day I posted something personal, took me a while to write it, and the only comment I got was super generic like “great insights, keep sharing!” — felt like it wasn’t even about what I wrote. Pretty sure it was AI or just someone farming curation. Makes you not wanna bother sometimes, you know? I don’t mind if ppl use tools to help write, like English isn’t easy for everyone, but when it feels like a bot wrote it with no care… yeah nah. Hive's cool cause we actually talk to each other, not just scroll and like stuff like on Insta or whatever. I miss more real convos, where people actually read and share their own take. That’s what made me stay here.
What Can We Do About It?
The bottom line is that we can't police HIVE with absolute surety that AI has been used to write a comment, or or a post for that matter. But we can have valuable, polite conversations with people when we suspect it. WE don't have to be accusatory and nasty (what if we're wrong?) but more gently suggest we much prefer and value genuine interaction.
What do you think?
Images in this post taken by me.
With Love,
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I must admit I sometimes check posts with an AI detector before I vote on them if the language is just a little too flowery. I think you can usually tell by the vocabulary and the too perfect grammar...and I'm always gentle!
Good on you...100% uppie for you!
I thank you most kindly for your appreciation of my gentleness... or is it my sneakiness?
Your dislike of AIness.
Yes, I think gentle is a good approach. People take this haughty moral high ground but most often than not, it's just people being human, ironically enough.
I've never used AI to write anything, So, no. Where is the fun in that? Not for me.
100% uppie for this legit comment and anti-AI sentiment. ✅
Thanks! I honestly would not get any enjoyment from posting something AI had written, so why do it at all? I'm here for the warm and fuzzies my own brain produces.
AI is shit and all legit people know it. 😉
100% from me!
Great topic.
There was a case some time ago when someone had commented on a post of mine that got me suspicious, I went on to check her other recent comments and noticed they were both in big chunks similar to this paragraph will become I assume in the span of a minute or two. I kept observing the account and while it was being careful, it kept making a few mistakes here and there as the usual way to consume content on Hive would be to read a post, maybe not fully but still enough to leave a long comment, then move on to another post and consume that one and leave another lengthy comment, but doing so takes time for most humans, even if you're the fastest reader and fastest typer it's going to take longer than a minute to leave comments of this length on two separate posts while also having consumed them.
I asked the author if they were using AI to consume and generate comments but of course they said no but the reply was like 8h later after having left a few more comments here and there on other posts. Either way, after more digging we noticed they had also plagiarised posts in the past, etc.
My point is, similar to some users who may be jumping from alt account to alt account to try avoid curation project voting cooldowns while keeping both accounts active enough to pretend to be regular users - one fuck up and your reputation is usually toast. So I guess the same goes for those trying to cheat their way with pretending to be consuming and engaging with posts through close to no effort other than copy-pasting posts to consume and generated comments to reply with through an AI platform.
Authors in general do better the longer they can uphold a healthy reputation so hopefully people aren't dumb enough to stoop down to these levels to fake activity in an effort to maybe get rewarded more because they may hit a wall sooner or later and wish they could go back to just leaving regular comments now and then and earning alongside everyone else not attempting any cheap tricks.
Yes, that's a good point - if you reply on one of those comments you don't often get the engagement back. A bit of sleuthing usually turns up the evidence!
I think I prefer talking to people about it rather than flagging it or down voting as I can see WHY they might do it - it's just the ones who are intentionally nefarious that bother me. I like to chat to them about it as I don't want them to end up leaving because they've blown their rep early.
What pisses me off is the ones that get their knickers in a knot over it and start screaming at you and down voting you just because you've politely raised the issue. Thankfully there definitely are more good players here.
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I never quite know what to think. I love reading about AI advances. Beyond the simple generation of text, which is just the upper part of the iceberg, the rest is too interesting not to be interested in. If only for research.
Being French, with very bad English, I use DeepL's API to translate my text.
When I write a comment, it's often on my phone and my keyboard offers me a translation of my text. Honestly, I don't know what my English looks like from the point of view of a native speaker. All I know is that I can make myself understood much better than with my own English. It is a major step forward to be able, easily, to make oneself understood by more people.
To generate a translation, DeepL uses seven years of data to power its AI. So it's actually AI-generated content. But I think it's still human enough to be enjoyable to read.
On the other hand, I know that there is a risk of AI spam being used so badly.
I think it's about education rather than punishment. For example, by creating tutorials on "how to use ChatGPT/Claude/Mistral ethically on Hive." To promote this, use personal photos, screenshots, videos, and real-life experiences.
Again, I'm unsure if my AI use is ethical. I believe it is, but if not, I'd rather be told frankly than punished.
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Yes! I hope this point also came across in my post. I totally understand why non English speakers use AI assistants here like you do. But there's a definite difference between using it wholly and using it to assist.
.I've always found your comments personal, authentic and very YOU, so you are clearly using it with ethical intention and I appreciate being able to communicate with you!
Lately it seems like AI really overdoes it on the em dashes. Which really stinks, because I have always liked using em dashes in my writing but now I deliberately try to avoid them just because I don't want to be mistaken for AI.
For awhile the questions at the end designed to increase engagement was a very big telltale sign of AI. But it is getting a lot better. For awhile it was also really going overboard on Gen Z slang, but that is also being dialed back lately, making it more tricky to tell.
I really can't tell in that second comment you post. Slang spelling and casual abbreviations, incorrect grammar, dropping words... AI now does all of that. I guess it would depend on who wrote it and if I trust them or not.
[Amusingly enough, I have a post about my usage of em dashes scheduled to drop tomorrow morning. But despite that post, I now find myself using them less and less because of AI]
I love em dashes too! I won't stop using them and I don't know why people see them as a marker for AI.
The second comment is also AI, and I simply changed the prompt to get it to do that. That's why it's impossible to actually accuse someone - it's getting impossible to tell. Anyone accusing wants to be damn sure.
I love the way some uni professors say they can tell it's AI because idiot students leave the prompt attached 😂😂
Want people to know it's you, the actual human, making a comment? Be specific. Never be vaguely congenial and complimentary, like, "I appreciate the perspective you offer in this post. It's refreshing to see your creativity here!"
Oh yeah, absolutely.
Im super annoyed by it honestly
(Have been digging through a ton of application letters this week and a lot of them have this AI feeling to it. I get that you use it for inspiration, but come onn....if you are not putting in human touch.. whats the point)
Usually when I see a sort of AI comment i check what what other comments they leave on there and even make some remake to it.
You can just see it (i guess this will be different in a year of time)
Stupidity is not putting a human touch into an AI assisted doc. People's brains are disintegrating I swear.
Hah, I'm writing application letters for jobs now, and I'm just being so very blunt.
Dear [Recruiter],
I'm writing because I am capable of this job, and here's why:
In addition, beyond the position description, I am skilled in x, and y, which are relevant to position because of [reason].
I can start on [date]. Call me to find out how I can my your org more efficient, your staff happier, and achieve better outcomes for customers.
Thanks,
holoz0r
(I am looking for work in Analytics and Business Improvement) People don't have time to look through a meticulously crafted by ultimately soul-less letter. I am sure most of the letters you get even have the same structure - if multiple applicants are using the same ai with a similar prompt, they'll get almost identical output.
Ohh such a disgrace in your self if you are using AI to do a comment. do we know longer have the brains to think
I think it's sometimes people are busy, or embarrassed they can't write well, or lazy. But yeah a pinch of idiocy too.
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Well, there are different approaches to how we perceive things. I guess this post came alive from our conversation, and I like how you were plain and open about it. It is always good to feel connected with the person you are talking to. Nobody wants to talk to a bot. We humans have feelings, and it will surely run through what we write or do. The fact that we are human makes us prone to error. In writing, we often overlook some grammatical errors because we are often in a hurry to comment or post. However, even when we are not in haste, there are still typos errors in our write-up. There are AI that can just do that for us. Like myself, I used voice recording and often used grammatical to correct to make it readable.
It did come from our conversation, my friend. But it wasn't directed at you specifically that's for sure.
I hope you saw I was sympathetic to this in my post and I do understand that. There's a real difference between using AI to help you write better, and using it to create the entire comment, for sure.
Don't worry this post is directly aimed at people who write with AI all the time, completely, for personal gain - and NOT you at all.
Clever!
Oh, I can totally tell the difference between the two comments. First one is definitely AI, because why does it feel like it did a simple recap on everything you had said? And also, should I say it's too verbose? I'm careful about this because I get very wordy in my writing as well, and use big words that may look like I was sitting beside a dictionary to write it, or probably quoting AI.
But honestly though, I think AI is getting better at not sounding generic. I just hope that I can still spot them out. Most times I start praising an author for being so dexterous with words, and then find later that AI was employed in everything. Disheartening, I'll tell you.
You know, the second one was AI too! I just prompted it differently. Crazy. It's why it's almost impossible to tell!
The high dependency on Ai for almost everything is really alarming, we have brains and feelings, can we put them to use please.
I agree!
Well, I think, it takes more time comment using AI, and someone would only do that, if they are doing a lot of comments, to farm rewards. And as you said, normal human comments would not be always this big, so if someone is always leaving a big comment, then there is something to suspect.
Yeah there's a few people who write long comments but they were doing it way before AI was here.
But they will be very few and trust worthy as well.
I didn't know people uses AI to write comments, like 🙄? Why would you use AI to write a comment, what happened to your brain. As much as I like what AI is doing but I think there's a limit to everything
People's brains are going to get worse!
Yeah it’s pretty funny to think that people are so lazy that they throw a post in AI to read it and then ask AI to come up with a comment for it lol wtf bros.
I use AI in some degree but mainly just to use the PeakD post summary feature. Helps me get to many posts in a session for comments! I didn’t use it on this one though :D
Ha no you should be reading the whole thing, respect for people's efforts man 😂
If it’s 400 words or less I usually will but I hear you! Balance of time and availability is a killer
Then don't get obsessed with commenting on everyone's posts. I don't know how we got to that point where we think we have to. Aim for what you can do, when you can!
Oh man, this has been such a big annoyance to me reading comments. Sometimes when I don't know the person, or doubt a little (often because I don't know their writing style), I answer anyway without an upvote or just a short message.. But some lay it on there SO thick, that they even copy these AI layouts that you get when you ask ChatGTP for some topic ideas to write about. Including the emojis lol.
I've had my suspicions about some long term members as well reading their comments... I prefer that someone just doesn't say anything and not engage over leaving me a comment that's AI written without any true engagement in the end.
AI comments often use fancy words in between and defo leaves out the spelling errors. It just feels off, if you're around long enough here, you can spot them quite easily imo.
Anyway, let's hope it's not going to be the norm ;)
Have a great weekend over there!
Oh yeah AI comments are the worst. I used to get mad then I realized they actually wanted to sound interesting and have something to say when maybe their literacy/English skills weren't great. I haven't met one yet that hasn't been cool about it when I've raised the issue. Often they deny (embarrassment/fear) but they also often stop doing it or admit they've used it for certain reasons.
Haha, it reminds me a bit about the way I used to respond to "Great post" comments, those often popped up with just these two words, especially on the older platform. It used to make me so pissed and respond with something like "you surely didn't read" or "What was so great about it?" "What did you like most?" LOL
Now I try to more ignore them rather than let it get under my skin, better for the health :)
Have a great weekend!
I feel bad I may have ignored a few people more times that I would like to just because I can’t tell if their comments are AI. There are three people who seem a little too loyal, and the comments are always a little too general but I get the feeling that sometimes it is a genuine comment and they actually read. I don’t really know how to deal with this issue. I will feel so sad if they were actually reading all my posts every day
Someone here told me you don't need to respond to EVERYTHING. That's fair. Use your guy and heart, and don't overthink it x
My guy!! My guy!!! Talkin bout my guy…MY GUY!
Oh no lol your gut, your GUT
In the early days here, before AI, I remember certain bot accounts would fish for upvotes with short, meaningless comments across hundreds of posts. Now I see these efforts have become more sophisticated. I have accounts that regularly comment on my posts who I suspect are using AI. They're always dripping with flattery "This really touched me" and basically just parrot back a short summary of the blog post but it's all very generic and almost clinical. If I'm fairly sure it's AI I try to just not reward these in the hopes they'll stop and move on. Genuine comments from people who've actually read my posts are sometimes the highlight of my day and I think we should do everything we can to preserve this.
Oh yeah it's a dead give away, the flattery, the summary. You and I are good at spotting them because we understand the way people write as we spend time thinking about language, structure, and intent. People using AI don't understand these things - they're lazy. Or they're not clever enough to get the basics from AI and tweak it, which I would if I was using AI. I mean, could I have used AI to write this comment? I haven't flattered you yet - love your work, mate!
hmmmmmm. It really is difficult to discern. You've actually made me think that some of my own comments may be mistaken for ai...i'm going to read it again..but I am guessing that the capitalization of AI is perhaps a red flag...??
Never, I don´t need to farm comments for votes, I only comment when I want to comment.
However, I have in the last time increasingly the suspicion that some comments on my posts are indeed AI-generated.
Red flag 1: Comments are in German despite the author of the comment is not even German-speaking.
Red flag 2: Smooth elaborate english from non-native English speakers.
But as you say, there is not much one can do about it, it is not easy to prove it.