On October 1st, Hu Xijin, former chief editor of the Chinese state media “Global Times,” posted a lengthy article on his personal Weibo account to celebrate the so-called “National Day.” To his surprise, the article ended with an AI prompt saying, “Do you need me to help you proofread the entire text to ensure it perfectly matches your original oral statement without any omissions?” Internet users quickly caught on that AI was involved in ghostwriting this piece.
Hu Xijin’s Weibo post on the National Day praised the so-called “great progress” throughout, acknowledged the need for improvement in various areas including individual development, and concluded with a hopeful message for the youth. However, the post ended with an unusual line that raised suspicions about AI involvement.
The screenshot of the post with the AI prompt went viral, prompting Hu Xijin to edit the post and remove the AI hint. The hashtag “Hu Xijin deletes AI prompt” quickly gained traction on Weibo.
The general manager of Jiu Yi Asset Management (Beijing) Co., Ltd., and financial blogger known as “Financial Gossip Girl,” jokingly commented, “Hu Xijin secretly wrote a National Day essay with a bean bag, but forgot to delete the last paragraph.”
Financial blogger “Ye Aimo” remarked, “What a classic scene of an elder person having a mishap with AI. He used to speak out against AI writing, but now he’s using AI himself, consistent with his fence-sitting behavior.”
Tech influencer “Ha Xia” taunted, “Hu Xijin is really putting on a show, using AI to write Weibo posts. Old Hu, at your age, why pretend online? So, ‘today’s Hu Xijin defeats yesterday’s Hu Xijin, tomorrow’s Hu Xijin defeats today’s Hu Xijin,’ all thanks to AI? Are you treating your fans like monkeys?”
Weibo commentator “Uncle Liu Adan” scornfully commented, “Haha, the fox’s tail has been revealed. I always wondered why Hu Xijin would elaborate so much on every trivial matter. So, it was AI writing after all. One small oversight led to directly copying and pasting without verification?”
Columnist “Li Mu” wrote, “Thirty years ago, a friend informed me that Hu Xijin, who was then the deputy chief editor of the Global Times, did not personally write his famous articles. His colleagues wrote based on his dictation. Even after three decades, Hu’s fame still lies in verbal acrobatics rather than hands-on work. He’s keeping up with the times by avoiding the hassle of writing and using AI instead.”
In response, Hu Xijin posted another Weibo update, admitting to using AI tools extensively for data research, fact-checking, and oral record-keeping in his daily writing. He claimed the oversight of not removing the AI prompt and emphasized that his viewpoints were original, stating, “AI cannot create a ‘Hu Xijin’,” and questioning AI’s ability to match his writing level.
Netizens continued to mock him, with comments like, “Haha, Hu bean bag is exposed! And now he’s trying to justify it!” and “This piece was probably written by AI too.”
“The problem isn’t you using AI, it’s that the public assumes these articles are your original work. If journalists and writers rely on AI for content creation, then what’s the point of their profession? Their unique language and expression of real emotions and life experiences are genuine treasures in today’s world.”
“Your nonchalant attitude in this situation is more disappointing than your use of AI. Pointing fingers at others for mistakes comes with serious tones, but when it’s your mistake, you evade lightly. That’s where the issue lies. Also, ‘AI takes 100 years to match your level?’ So confident? AI needs a century to catch up with you? People reveal their true colors under extreme pressure.”