On Friday morning, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) President Kate Risatu reiterated the awards review process as it relates to the larger Language Model Tool (LLM). Sticking to the philosophy of “trust the voters”, the SFWA ruled that any work “written entirely using generative LLM tools” was ineligible, and if a nominated work used LLM “at any point” during the writing process, it would be stated on the ballot.
It was the second part of the rules that sparked controversy in online spaces, with many writers and fans condemning the SFWA for only taking a half-stand against Generative AI and LLM. A few hours later, the association issued a new statement with revised language, stating that works written “in whole or in part” with the technology were ineligible for the Nebula Awards. Creators who used LLM during the writing process will be required to disclose their use when accepting nominations, after which they will be disqualified.
Speaking about the original rules, SFWA acknowledged that they “do not reflect our current policy and deeply held beliefs and values, and have been amended to reflect them. To be clear, SFWA does not endorse the use of the LLM Generator model in the production of creative works.” It also said the posted rules would be changed to reflect this in the coming days.
Generative AI and LLM are controversial in creative fields such as writing and video games. Earlier this week, Larian Studios—producers of baldur’s gate 3, Risatu was name-checked in the initial statement — drawing fire when founder and game director Sven Vincke told Bloomberg that the studio was using generative AI to “explore ideas, develop PowerPoint presentations, develop concept art, and write placeholder text.” Such AI-generated content won’t be in the studio’s next game, divinity, And while acknowledging his employees’ initial skepticism, Vincke believed that “everybody in the company is more or less OK with the way we’re using it.”
This resulted in criticism from players and several game developers, with much input from the latter category coming from ex-Larian employees or writers who took issue with Larian’s hiring process. In response, Vincke assured that machine-learning tools were “additives to a creative team or individual’s workflow, not replacements for their skill or craft.” […] We are not releasing any games with any AI components, nor are we considering cutting teams and replacing them with AI.”
Last Thursday, Vinke announced a Reddit AMA involving Larian staff, since the initial Bloomberg interview (and subsequent controversy) “has been lost in translation. To give you more information, we will be doing an AMA featuring our various departments after the holiday break, in which you will have the opportunity to ask any questions you have directly about Divinity and our development process.” The date of that AMA and who will participate in it will be revealed in the new year.
The winners of the 2026 Nebula Awards will be revealed during the awards ceremony from June 5 to June 7 in Chicago.
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