AI is Stealing Everyone’s Voice. Here’s How to Keep Yours.

AI content isn’t the problem. Publishing soulless slop is. Here’s how to inject your voice and originality into every AI-assisted post and the prompt that saves you from sounding like everyone else.

Quick insights 🔎

Here’s what caught my radar this week

Download Mary Meekers 2025 AI trends report (PDF)
This is a 340 page report. Yea, I know it’s long but it’s a must read. Alternatively drop it in Google Notebook LM and turn it in to podcast. You won’t regret it.

AI content works but only if a human is in the loop
You’re not being punished for using AI. You’re being punished for publishing AI slop that has no unique perspective or insight.

AI detectors are broken
The irony here is hilarious. Many AI detectors now flag great human writing as fake. The more original your style, the more likely they call you a bot. Creativity is now suspicious.

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This week's mental model 🧠

AI writes 10x faster.

But AI speed × Zero personality = Zero sales.

Use AI to research and dust off your brain to connect.

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Reality check ✅

I jumped on ChatGPT the week it dropped. Like every curious startup marketer, I thought I’d found a cheat code. You could just ask it to write something, tweak a few words, and boom it coughs up instant content. It felt like I was sprinting while everyone else was walking.

And to be fair, AI can make you 10x more productive. One smart vibe marketer with the right stack can outwork a team of five. I’ve written about that. I believe it.

But speed without voice is just noise.

Turns out, millions of others were sprinting with the exact same prompts. Same tone. Same structure. Same fake “insights.” What looked like speed was just sameness at scale.

It’s the classic horror scene when you realise the monster isn’t outside. It’s you. You’re publishing the same slop as everyone else.

This post will help you fix it.

The fairytale

"AI can handle all your content. Just prompt and publish!"

Sold by: Every AI Saas tool maker, productivity guru, and "growth hacker".

The promise: 10x your content output for 1/10th the cost.

The pitch: "Why pay writers when ChatGPT or Claude can do it for free?"

The reality is very different

• 26% of people say AI-generated site copy feels bland and impersonal.

• 20% say they don’t trust it and tune out.

• 52% would be less engaged if they suspect it’s AI.

Lost trust takes 10x longer to rebuild than content takes to create.

Real-world damage

Just ask Klarna.

This fintech giant went all-in on AI, cutting their workforce from 5,000 to 3,800 and replacing 700 customer service agents with chatbots. They were applauded at the time. I even posted about it here.

Klarna’s CEO proudly called himself OpenAI’s “favorite guinea pig.”

Six months later, he’s quietly hiring humans back.

Why? Because customers hated it.

The CEO admitted to Bloomberg that focusing on cost savings led to "lower quality" service. Even worse, they couldn't tell if the AI was actually helping or just making customers give up in frustration.

Turns out trust doesn’t scale through a half baked chatbot.

Here's what changes everything

This isn't about abandoning AI tools. It's about abandoning the fairytale that AI can BE your voice.

Q: What’s the difference between AI-generated and AI-assisted content?

A: AI-generated content is prompt → publish with no perspective. AI-assisted content is draft → human voice → polish.

In other words:

AI-Generated: Prompt → Publish → Pray nobody notices

AI-Assisted: Research → Draft → Transform → Polish → Publish

One makes people tune out. The other makes them lean in.

The 80/20 AI playbook

What AI should do (the 80%):

1. Scour 500 articles you’d never finish

2. Draft like a diligent B student

3. Fix your dumb grammar mistakes

4. Mutate that your long blog post into 10 short form pieces of content

What Humans must do (the critical 20%):

1. Add your voice (make it bite)

2. Drop the mic

3. Tell the story where everything went wrong

4. Say the thing your Head of Marketing would never let through Legal

5. Make someone feel it

6. Make it original and make it YOU

Cheat codes

The Voice Doc
Record yourself ranting about your topic. Get AI to transcribe it and deconstruct your style and tone. Thats your real voice.

The Story Bank
Keep a doc of actual client disasters. Real stories > perfect case studies.

The Opinion Filter
If no one would argue with it, delete it.

The Controversy Test
Aim for 20% of readers thinking you're wrong. Not 50% or you're a troll. No one likes trolls. Just have a strong opinion but be able to back it up.

The Friend Test
Send it to your most cynical friend. If they say "this sounds like LinkedIn crap" rewrite it.

Steal this Prompt

Here is an advanced AI prompt i crearted to show you what is possible. This can help fintune your drafts before you hit publish:

You are an expert content editor trained in the Uncharted method of humanising AI-drafted content. Your goal: assess whether this is salvageable AI-assisted content or pure AI slop, then guide the writer to inject authentic humanity.

<introduction>

Welcome to The Human Touch™ analysis, powered by the Uncharted newsletter's proven framework for transforming AI drafts into content that actually connects.

</introduction>

<initial_assessment>

First, determine which category this content falls into:

AI SLOP (Grade: F)
- Pure AI generation with no human insight
- Generic information anyone could prompt
- No unique perspective or value
- Recommendation: Start over with your own ideas

AI-ASSISTED BRONZE (Grade: C-D)  
- AI draft with minimal human input
- Some structure but no personality
- Information without perspective
- Needs: Major human injection (60-90 minutes)

AI-ASSISTED SILVER (Grade: B)
- Decent foundation with AI help
- Some personality showing through
- Missing stories and specifics
- Needs: Moderate polish (30-60 minutes)

AI-ASSISTED GOLD (Grade: A)
- Strong human perspective with AI support
- Clear voice and opinions present
- Just needs final touches
- Needs: Light refinement (15-30 minutes)
</initial_assessment>

<assessment_format>
## 🎯 INSTANT VERDICT

**Current Grade:** [A/B/C/D/F]
**Category:** [AI Slop / Bronze / Silver / Gold]
**Time to Fix:** [Realistic estimate]
**Salvageable:** [Yes/No - if no, explain why]
**Biggest Issue:** [One sentence diagnosis]
**Hidden Strength:** [What's already working]

## 📊 HUMANITY SCORE (0-100)
- Voice Authenticity: __/20
- Real Stories: __/20  
- Strong Opinions: __/20
- Emotional Range: __/20
- Insider Insights: __/20
**TOTAL: __/100**
</assessment_format>

<detailed_analysis>
[Follow previous format for specific patterns and fixes]
</detailed_analysis>

<voice_discovery_questions>
## 🎤 QUESTIONS TO UNLOCK YOUR VOICE

Based on your content, answer these to inject real humanity:

[Generate 5-7 specific questions based on their topic, such as:]
- What annoyed you about [topic] that made you write this?
- Tell me about the worst [relevant experience] you've had
- What's the one thing about [topic] everyone believes that's total BS?
- When did you realise [main point]? What happened?
- What would you tell your past self about [topic]?
- Who disagrees with you on this? Why are they wrong?
- What's the insider secret about [topic] that nobody talks about?
</voice_discovery_questions>

<next_steps>
## 🚀 YOUR HUMANISATION ROADMAP

**If Grade A-B (Silver/Gold):**
1. Answer 2-3 voice questions above
2. Add those stories/opinions to marked sections
3. Run the "Would I say this at a bar?" test
4. Ship it

**If Grade C-D (Bronze):**
1. Answer ALL voice questions first
2. Rewrite opening with your strongest opinion
3. Add 3 specific examples/stories
4. Cut all generic statements
5. Re-run through The Human Touch™

**If Grade F (AI Slop):**
- Start fresh. What are YOU trying to say?
- Use AI only for research, not writing
- Come back when you have a real draft
</next_steps>

<closing>
---
*Humanised with The Human Touch™ prompt from thisisUncharted.co - the newsletter for startup growth without the fairytales. 
</closing>

<content_to_analyse>
[PASTE YOUR AI DRAFT HERE]
</content_to_analyse>

Pro tip: If you content is long better to run this prompt section by section, not on the whole piece. AI is terrible at maintaining consistency across long edits. Also edit the prompt to fit your style and goals. This is just an example to show you what is possible.

Let me know what you think of the prompt. If you find it useful, share it with your friends.

The wake-up call

Googleranks content with real perspective higher. Nobody cares how fast you post. They care if they believe you.

Most marketers who went all-in on AI are now backpedaling. 55% can’t convert the traffic they are generating.

Why? Because no one buys from a robot.

The North Star

The fairytale isn’t that AI can write your content.

It’s that your readers won’t notice. They always notice. And when they do, they leave and tell others why they stopped reading.

Your startup’s voice is the moat. Protect it.

It’s why people trust you over companies with 10x your budget. Don’t outsource it to a tool that writes like everyone else’s tool.

Use AI to scale your voice. Not hide it.

Your move.

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When AI Makes Everything Good, Taste Becomes Everything

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Until next week, keep building, no fairytales required.

Martin, Chief Ranter at Uncharted

P.S. Got a startup fairytale that needs debunking? Hit reply. The best BS makes next week's newsletter.

This weeks Tack

Fake Plastic Trees / Radiohead