Scandal in Literature / The Writer Thelyson Orelien, Recently Awarded in France, Accused of Using AI

Canadian writer of Haitian origin Thelyson Orelien is accused of using artificial intelligence to write almost the entire novel “C’était ça ou mourir,” one of the major releases of the French literary season. The controversy erupted Monday on the social network X, on the very day the author won the Fnac Award for Best Novel.

The accusation was made by the user behind the “Balance ton Claude” account, who analyzed several excerpts using Pangram software. The post went viral, being reshared more than 1,000 times and garnering over three million views.

Checks conducted by AFP with several AI-generated text detection tools produced contradictory results. InVID-WeVerify indicated that the excerpts were very likely written by a human, while other programs estimated probabilities ranging from 0% to 100% for the use of artificial intelligence.

Grasset publishing house did not comment on the allegations. Canadian publisher Boreal, which published the novel in the spring, said it was taking the situation seriously but continued to have confidence in the author’s work. The book is among the top sellers in France and appears on the shortlists for the Goncourt, Medicis and Femina prizes.