Storytel lets AI write audiobook: "No threat"

Storytel gave an artificial intelligence the task of writing a book – but was forced to spend months helping the digital debutante. The result? The book couldn't be published in its original form.

» Published: January 23 2025

Storytel lets AI write audiobook: "No threat"
Photo: Vilhelm Stokstad/TT

AI simply cannot surpass human writing today, states content responsible Helena Gustafsson, ahead of Storytel's release of a "completely AI-produced audiobook", featuring four short stories.

However, the fact that it is completely AI-produced is a truth with modifications. The task assigned to AI was indeed to write, translate, read, and illustrate a complete work – Storytel's team created Rosy Lett, a 22-year-old AI author, who was supposed to write her debut novel in the spring of 2024. But it is human creativity that has guided her.

There has been a large team involved, and it is their creativity and experience that have created the project, since there has been a lot of human intervention, says Helena Gustafsson.

Inconsistent and Gender-Stereotypical

Lett was supposed to write a futuristic novel about love and relationships in an AI world, but spat out a generic science fiction that was both inconsistent and had gender-stereotypical plot. After weeks of fine-tuning, corrections, and restarts, Storytel decided to scrap the manuscript and instead instruct Rosy to write four short stories.

The greatest insight from the work is that AI today is not progressive or inclusive. Unintentionally, it often creates and preserves stereotypes, says Helena Gustafsson.

But did they expect a masterpiece? No, Storytel went in with the main goal of learning the tool better, explains Gustafsson. She emphasizes that they collaborate with 1,600 publishers, many of which also experiment with AI. She sees it as a "responsibility" to familiarize themselves with the tool.

But this shows that AI cannot replace human creativity in the foreseeable future, she says.

"A Tool"

AI can, however, support the creative process, emphasizes Helena Gustafsson.

AI is a tool, and even if it's not good at creating new stories, there are incredibly many areas of use – such as AI voices and AI assistance in translations, which enables faster publication of a book.

Are there not corresponding flaws in the translation?

Yes, it's incredibly important to work ethically and responsibly when using generative AI. And that's to ultimately ensure quality.

The anthology "New Horizon", by digital debutant Rosy Lett, is now being released on Storytel – in English, Swedish, Finnish, and Danish, on January 23.

The four stories that AI debutant ultimately created highlight the problem of blurring the boundaries between humans and machines.

One of the short stories is about an AI assistant working with a researcher and developing feelings for them, another about a person who has suffered from memory loss and gets help to feel secure through AI recreating memories and events from the person's life, which doesn't quite succeed.

Tags

TTT
By TTThis article has been altered and translated by Sweden Herald

More news

The Traitors Wins Program of
1 MIN READ

The Traitors Wins Program of the Year at Sweden's Riagalan Awards

Swedish Authors Call on Culture
1 MIN READ

Swedish Authors Call on Culture Minister to Address Meta's AI Use

Uppsala Pavilion Wins Prestigious Kasper
1 MIN READ

Uppsala Pavilion Wins Prestigious Kasper Salin Architecture Prize

Muse Delays Istanbul Concert to
1 MIN READ

Muse Delays Istanbul Concert to 2026 Over Organizer Concerns

Sabrina Carpenter Shines in Sold-Out
2 MIN READ

Sabrina Carpenter Shines in Sold-Out Stockholm Shows

Michel Houellebecq Debuts Concert at
1 MIN READ

Michel Houellebecq Debuts Concert at Danish Literature Festival

Bruce Springsteen Unveils Seven Lost
1 MIN READ

Bruce Springsteen Unveils Seven Lost Albums in New Box Set

Royal Library to Create National
1 MIN READ

Royal Library to Create National Digital Book Lending Standard

Drake Gains Access to Key
1 MIN READ

Drake Gains Access to Key Documents in Kendrick Lamar Legal Battle

Italian Director Nanni Moretti Stable
1 MIN READ

Italian Director Nanni Moretti Stable After Heart Attack in Rome

Genre image
1 MIN READ

Lena From Appointed Permanent Secretary at Academy of Fine Arts

Ralph Fiennes Steps into Opera
1 MIN READ

Ralph Fiennes Steps into Opera Directing with Eugene Onegin in Paris

Christina Nilsson Shines as Aida
1 MIN READ

Christina Nilsson Shines as Aida at Birgit Nilsson Days in Båstad

Hilma af Klint Foundation Board
1 MIN READ

Hilma af Klint Foundation Board Stays Intact Pending Court Decision

Love is Blind Reunion: Swedish
2 MIN READ

Love is Blind Reunion: Swedish Couples Share Joyful Updates

Incurably Ill Woman's Journey to
3 MIN READ

Incurably Ill Woman's Journey to Fulfill Her Desires Becomes TV Series

Swedish Radio Journalist Åke Pettersson
1 MIN READ

Swedish Radio Journalist Åke Pettersson Passes Away at 77

Swedish House Mafia Joins Denniz
1 MIN READ

Swedish House Mafia Joins Denniz Pop Awards Jury

Medea's Children Returns to Stockholm
1 MIN READ

Medea's Children Returns to Stockholm Stage 50 Years Later

Swedish Violinist Johan Dalene Awarded
1 MIN READ

Swedish Violinist Johan Dalene Awarded Alfvén Society Scholarship

Genre image
1 MIN READ

60s Hitmaker Johnny Tillotson Dies at 84

Culture Minister Unfamiliar with Noted
1 MIN READ

Culture Minister Unfamiliar with Noted Directors Nolan and Widerberg

Swedish Artist Lap-See Lam Wins
1 MIN READ

Swedish Artist Lap-See Lam Wins Prestigious Norwegian Art Prize

Dick Bengtsson's Art Challenges Perceptions
3 MIN READ

Dick Bengtsson's Art Challenges Perceptions at Stockholm Exhibit

Hollywood Remembers Val Kilmer: Tributes
2 MIN READ

Hollywood Remembers Val Kilmer: Tributes Pour in for the Iconic Actor

Tarantino's Hollywood Sequel May Land
1 MIN READ

Tarantino's Hollywood Sequel May Land on Netflix with Fincher Directing

New Films and Series: Minecraft
3 MIN READ

New Films and Series: Minecraft Movie Debuts and More This Week

Susanne Yakes Could Be Chosen
2 MIN READ

Susanne Yakes Could Be Chosen as Listeners' Summer Host on P1

Munich 1972: How Live TV
3 MIN READ

Munich 1972: How Live TV Coverage Changed Journalism Forever

Val Kilmer, Iconic Actor from
2 MIN READ

Val Kilmer, Iconic Actor from Top Gun and Batman, Dies at 65

The Hives Announce New Album
1 MIN READ

The Hives Announce New Album and European Tour Starting October

Meg Westergren Honored with 2023
1 MIN READ

Meg Westergren Honored with 2023 Fatima Prize by Karl Gerhard Society

Authors Demand UK Action on
1 MIN READ

Authors Demand UK Action on Meta Over Alleged Book Copyright Breach

Ane Brun Cancels Istanbul Concert
1 MIN READ

Ane Brun Cancels Istanbul Concert Following Protest Backlash

Marion Brunet Wins Alma Prize
4 MIN READ

Marion Brunet Wins Alma Prize for Young Adult Literature

Oliver Stone to Testify in
1 MIN READ

Oliver Stone to Testify in Congress on New JFK Documents

Maria Montazami and Samir Badran
1 MIN READ

Maria Montazami and Samir Badran Join The Traitors on TV4

Masked Singer Tops TV Ratings
1 MIN READ

Masked Singer Tops TV Ratings with 1.5 Million Viewers

New Beatles Biopics Cast Revealed:
1 MIN READ

New Beatles Biopics Cast Revealed: Mescal, Quinn, Keoghan, Dickinson

World's Largest Children's Book Prize
3 MIN READ

World's Largest Children's Book Prize Set for 1 PM Announcement