APPG Writers Group Launch Report on AI

The APPG Writers Group chaired by Chris Evans MP held an event in the Churchill Room On 2 December 2025 to launch their report, “The Impact of Generative AI on the Novel” by Dr Clementine Collett, BRAID UK Research Fellow Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy, University of Cambridge.  I was pleased to attend the launch of the report and to be mentioned as Chair of the APPG on Publishing by the Chair and the other speaker Lord Tim Clement -Jones who is a member of the APPG on Publishing. 

The full report can be accessed at mctd.ac.uk

Here is a brief Summary of the Research:

Over a third (39%) of novelists report that their income has been negatively impacted due to GenAI. Considering that the average salary for a writer in the UK is around 7,000 this is not just disincentivising, but unsustainable for many. 

Concerning the future, over half of novelists (51% ) believe that it is likely AI will displace their work entirely. Amongst other factors, they attributed this largely to their work, and that of millions of other novelists, being pirated and then scraped to train GenAI models without permission or remuneration.

Novelists felt that through this use of their work, Ai models would become increasingly sophisticated, flooding the market with fiction and competing with their own work in the process. 

The report also mentioned Publishing Industry Practice: 

Increase Industry Transparency:

Publishers should be transparent about their in-house use of AI. This should be openly communicated and discussed with literary agents and authors to increase trust, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing within the industry, and to allow for traceability as needed. 

License GenAI Training Rights as Sub-Rights if going through Publishers:

Publishers should recognise and respect that GenAI training rights lie with the author and should license accordingly. The industry should work together to normalise that, if going through publishers, GenAI training rights should be licensed as sub-rights with a fair financial split. 

Support Around AI Use and Contacts:

The industry should increase support and guidance around navigating the implications of AI use and AI training rights in contracts, particularly for self-published and un-agented authors, along with independent publishers. This support could include campaigns to encourage authors and publishers to join memberships societies and trade unions. These bodies should continue guidance for their members on AI use, copyright and contractual clauses. 

I look forward to further debate on this important issue.