Fable, a popular one Social media app The company, which describes itself as a haven for “bookworms and binge watchers,” has created an AI-powered year-end roundup summarizing what book users will read in 2024. It was supposed to be playful and entertaining, but some of the flashbacks seemed overly weirdly campy in tone. For example, in his summary, author Danny Groves asked if he was “ever in the mood for a straight, cis white male perspective” after describing him as a “diversity supporter.”
Meanwhile, book influencer Tiana Trammell’s roundup ended with the following advice: “Don’t forget to show up for the occasional white author, okay?”
Trammell was amazed and soon realized she wasn’t alone after sharing her experience with Fables recaps on Threads. “I received several messages,” she says, from people whose summaries included inappropriate comments about “disability and sexual orientation.”
Since the debut of Spotify packedAnnual reviews have become ubiquitous on the Internet, giving users a snapshot of how many books and news articles they’ve read, how many songs they’ve listened to, and how many workouts they’ve completed. Some companies are now using AI to completely create or expand the presentation of these metrics. Spotify, for example, now offers one AI generated podcast where robots analyze your listening history and make assumptions about your life based on your tastes. Fable jumped on the trend and used OpenAI’s API to create summaries of the last 12 months of reading habits for its users. However, the company didn’t expect the AI model to spit out comments that would take on the air of an anti-woke expert.
Fable later apologized on multiple social media channels, including Threads and Instagram posted a video of a senior executive who issues the mea culpa. “We deeply regret the harm caused by some of our reader roundups this week,” the company wrote in the headline. “We will do better.”
Kimberly Marsh Allee, head of the Fable community, told WIRED before publication that the company is working on a number of changes to improve its AI summaries, including an opt-out option for people who don’t want them, and clearer disclosures indicating that they are AI generated. “For now, we’ve removed the part of the model that playfully roasts the reader, and instead the model simply summarizes the user’s book tastes,” she said.
After publication, Marsh Allee said that Fable had instead made the decision to immediately remove the AI-generated reading summaries for 2024, as well as two other features that used AI.
For some users, adjusting the AI may not seem like an appropriate response. Fantasy and romance author AR Kaufer was horrified when she saw screenshots of some summaries on social media. “They have to say they are getting rid of AI completely. And they have to make a statement, not just about AI, but also with an apology to those affected,” says Kaufer. “This ‘apology’ on threads seems disingenuous. The mention of the app was “playful,” as if it somehow excused the racist/sexist/ableist quotes.” In response to the incident, Kaufer decided to delete her Fable account.
