Apple’s big AI slop problem

Then, Apple and Microsoft have started raising prices on gadgets in a big way. Why buying refurbished might not save you much. And instead of an Old Thing this week, we’re taking a peek into your cord closets. Yes, all those savvy cable organizers finally get their moment.

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Apple has an AI book slop problem. A big one.

Last month, just days after my book went on sale, AI knockoffs of the ebook version flooded Apple Books. There was Joanna Stern On I Am Not A Robot by Sophie Mercer. I AM NOT A ROBOT by Finn Tech. I AM NOT A ROBOT by Joana Stern—with one “n.” (Watch our latest video showing all these titles and more.)

In total, I found ten AI-generated ebooks clearly riding on mine, with AI-generated covers mimicking the style of my real one—the same blue, yellow and red color palette. Most were priced at $9.99, but some have gone as high as $20.99.

So I bought a few to see just how close they came to the original. Sophie Mercer’s version was essentially an AI-generated summary, with chapters and a structure that closely mirrored mine. This and the other counterfeits I looked through all seemed intended to fool readers into thinking this was the original—or at least a summary of it. 

We tried tracking down Sophie Mercer, but she doesn’t exist. Well, other than as a character in a show named “Warrior.” We also tried to track down her purported publisher, “Apex Press,” but instead found only Apex Book Company, a legit independent press. 

“Unfortunately, Apex is a popular name for knockoffs. We receive several queries each week from people with fraudulent or bad dealings with apparently crooked Apex publishers,” Jason Sizemore, who owns the real Apex, told me.   

After I contacted Apple about my own book’s clones back in May, the knockoffs quickly disappeared.

An Apple spokeswoman told me Apple Books strictly prohibits content that misleads customers or infringes on copyrights. Apple also requires authors and publishers to clearly disclose when a book is AI-generated (but not “AI-assisted”). It investigates publishers who upload lots of books that appear to mislead customers or exploit others’ intellectual property. If you think a book violates Apple’s rules, you can submit a claim here. 

But now, a month after that first Apple cleanup, the problem is back. At the start of this week, there were at least three other I AM NOT A ROBOT counterfeits on Apple Books. (They seem to have since been removed.)

And I’m not alone. Lena Dunham’s Famesick has multiple lookalikes on the platform. Haley Sacks’s Future Rich Person has copycats that even use AI generated images of women on the cover that resemble the real author.  

These aren’t obscure titles. They’re bestsellers. If Apple can’t keep AI knockoffs of its highest-profile books out of its store, how can independent authors or small publishers feel confident theirs will be protected?

Apple declined to comment further.

Amazon’s issue wasn’t AI clones of popular ebooks, it was print “workbooks.” I found two of these based on I AM NOT A ROBOT, so naturally I bought those, too. And for $15 a pop! What arrived were thin paperbacks with a few generic discussion questions followed by lined-notebook pages. 

Amazon removed the workbooks. A company spokesman says Amazon has guidelines around which books can be listed, and it uses both proactive and reactive systems to remove violations.

While the workbooks were arguably less deceptive than the AI slop on Apple Books, they’re another example of how easily low-effort “publishers” are exploiting successful titles.

The real problem here is consumer deception. If someone searches for a bestselling book, can they trust that’s what they’re actually buying? 

Right now, on Apple Books, the answer is a hard no. 

Last Friday, we told you Apple price hikes were coming. This Friday, we’re telling you they’re here. Apple jacked up prices on Macs and iPads this week by as much as $200. Up until now, the company has largely absorbed rising component costs, driven by the AI boom, but as Apple said in a statement, “we have never seen a component price increase this much, this quickly." 

While the company said it’s “working tirelessly to find solutions,” it's tempting to skip buying new, more expensive products and head toward refurbished ones in moments like these. Yet Apple has raised prices there, too.  

Refurbished devices often require new parts—memory, storage, etc.—so their costs are increasing as well, an Apple spokesperson said. Since refurbished products are cheaper than new ones, price hikes on new products can also push up the costs of their refurbished counterparts.

Still, you might want to check out refurbished device sites like Back Market or Amazon Renewed to avoid paying top dollar—and then some—for the latest gadgets.

A few weeks ago I shared my Museum of Ancient Cords (MoAC)—a collection built over the past 30-something years, along with my sorting system of cable wraps, Ziploc bags and boxes. Turns out many of you are fellow cord hoarders, with very impressive organizational systems. Honestly, I’m not surprised. Great minds keep 15 spare Mini-USB cables.

Your submissions were so good they deserved their own feature:

All I know is I feel better knowing I am not alone. There are many others out there who understand the sacred cord-hoarder creed: YOU NEVER KNOW…WHEN YOU MIGHT NEED FOUR 30-PIN CHARGING CABLES. Amen.

Have a great weekend! 🏌This newsletter was written and curated by Joanna Stern and Adele Lowitz. Amaya Austin contributed to reporting on Apple Books.