Future Fed My Work into the Content Machine

Future has announced a partnership with OpenAI, allowing its “content” to be fed into the gaping maw of the regurgitated slop mill that is ChatGPT. This sucks. There are many, many words that have been written about why ChatGPT and its ilk are awful and rather than make a hamfisted attempt of my own, I will encourage you to read some of what’s out there already. This is because I, unlike Future and OpenAI, actually respect writers. Why am I writing about it now then? Why this time and not one of the many other instances of some steward of the written word abdicating their duties for a fast buck? This time it’s my work being sold and I’m fucking furious.

Fortunately, I’ve not done a huge amount of freelancing for Future, but some of my work for EDGE, namely the two Time Extend retrospectives I wrote, including this one that was selected for an end of year highlight, is some of the best work I’ve produced. It wasn’t easy work to produce, either. There’s a huge difference between reviewing a new videogame and analysing the production and impact of one decades after its release. Factoring the time I spent on research and Future’s shitty rates, they’re probably some of the worst-paid pieces I’ve done. I’m still damn proud of my work though, and seeing my byline in a magazine I first picked up as a child gave me a thrill like few other moments in my career.