I Had AI Write My Instagram Captions. My Friends Got Worried.

This first post got some great feedback from friends, who seemed somewhat interested. “Would try!” said someone. “Love a frank review,” said another. 

But some people seemed to notice the tone was a little… strange. “Great content thanks for sharing,” commented another friend dryly. “Is this an #ad?” asked a former coworker.

Most excitingly, the official Goldfish brand cracker account commented: “love that you’re loving it 🧡🔥”

Next I tried a photo of Sour Patch Kids–flavored Trident Vibes gum. (I found it unbearable; my 6- year-old loved it.) My AI caption:

I recently tried the new “sour patch kids” flavor of gum and, unfortunately, it wasn’t for me. The flavor was a bit too strong and it didn’t really hit the spot for me. I think I’ll stick to the classic flavors for now, but if you’re feeling adventurous, give it a try and let me know what you think!

It got a few comments like “The vibes are off.” No one seemed to notice though, and since it wasn’t a positive review, it didn’t sound like an ad. 

A few days later, I did a review of Starry, the new lemon-lime soda from Pepsi that replaced Sierra Mist. To make it seem less botlike, I used a photo of me holding up the bottle. I asked ParagraphAI to write an Instagram caption in the tone of a food influencer this time. 

I just tried out this new soda called Starry, and I’ve been seeing it in stores lately! Unfortunately, it wasn’t for me. I’m sure it’s great for someone else, but it just didn’t hit the spot for me. Oh well, you can’t win them all! #StarrySoda #TryItOut #NotMyThing

I think the hashtags gave away that something was off, because what kind of normal person uses hashtags like this? “U ok?” asked a coworker. Others mimicked the AI-speak. “I’m hearing Starry is quite polarizing,” said another friend who works at an ad agency that works with PepsiCo. “Interesting to get your take, thanks for weighing in.”

So far, it seemed that ParagraphAI was very capable of creating a legible, understandable caption for Instagram with a very basic prompt. The results didn’t sound like me, but I could see how this might be useful for writing marketing copy for social media.