Emerging
May 28, 20261
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Recognition of Distinctive 'AI Smells' Emerging Across Generated Content
A mathematician noticed that AI-generated writing improvements to their blog became indistinguishable from each other and later appeared across the internet, leading them to catalog distinctive recurring patterns—or "AI smells"—in both LLM-generated writing and AI-designed websites that now serve as recognizable markers of AI involvement.
Quick Facts
Who
mathematician/blogger
What
Used LLMs to enhance math blog writing
When
Late 2025 (started using LLMs)
Where
Math blog (now deleted)
- Used LLMs to enhance math blog writing
- Observed identical sentence structures appearing across the internet
- Documented recurring stylistic patterns in AI-generated content
- Identified visual design patterns in AI-generated websites
- mathematician/blogger
As large language models become increasingly integrated into creative and technical work, a distinctive set of stylistic patterns—termed "AI smells"—are becoming recognizable across various types of AI-generated or AI-assisted content. A mathematician who used LLMs to enhance writing for a blog project initially found the AI-generated text superior to their own work, featuring better vocabulary and interesting sentence structures. However, approximately three months after publishing, the author began noticing identical sentence structures and phrasing patterns appearing across the broader internet, suggesting these patterns are not unique but rather systematic artifacts of LLM output.
The author has identified specific recurring patterns in LLM-generated writing that serve as markers of AI assistance. These include an overabundance of punchlines, such as "Humans trust symmetry because it feels like intelligence made visible" and "Cringe is the visible signature of moving along a gradient you chose." Other patterns include the frequent use of consecutive short sentences for emphasis, formulaic structures like "X is the Y of Z," and phrases constructed as "ist not just X, its Y." These patterns have become sufficiently recognizable that they now serve as indicators of AI-generated or AI-assisted text.
Beyond written content, similar design and aesthetic patterns—termed "AI smells" in the visual domain—have emerged in AI-generated websites. Common visual markers include the consistent use of JetBrains Mono font, standardized step indicators and bullet points, identical button styles, uniform card layouts, and distinctive blinking-dot badge components. These design elements appear so frequently across different websites that they have become identifiable signatures of AI-assisted web design. The author emphasizes they are not opposed to AI assistance in creative tasks but rather documenting the observable patterns that have emerged as these tools become more widely adopted.
Topics
Why This Matters
As AI-generated content becomes increasingly prevalent, recognizing distinctive 'AI smells' helps readers and creators identify which content has been AI-assisted or generated, enabling informed consumption decisions and maintaining transparency in digital communications. This cataloging of patterns supports media literacy and allows professionals to audit their own work for unintended AI signatures, while also documenting how LLM outputs exhibit systematic, recognizable artifacts rather than truly diverse writing styles.
Timeline & Sources
May 28, 2026
WireAuthor published documentation of recurring 'AI smell' patterns found in AI-generated content