Waterstones would sell books written by AI, says the chain’s boss

Waterstones would stock books created with artificial intelligence, the company boss said, as long as they were clearly labeled and customers wanted it.

However, James Daunt, a veteran of the bookselling industry, said he personally did not expect this to happen.

“There is a huge proliferation of AI-generated content and most of it is not books we should be selling,” he said, but added that it was “up to the reader.”

The explosion in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) has sparked heated debates in the publishing industry, with writers concerned about the impact on their livelihoods.

In an extensive interview with the BBC podcast Big Boss Interview, Daunt said that while Waterstones is using AI for logistics, it is currently trying to keep AI-generated content out of stores.

“As booksellers we sell what publishers publish, but I can say that instinctively we would do that…”