Kenyans Wrote 2,500 Essays for Overseas Students. Then ChatGPT Took the Job
Kenyans Did College Students' Homework for Years. Then A.I. Arrived
Teresios Bundi wrote more than 2,500 essays for cheating overseas college students over 12 years, earning $7 for his first assignment. The work was a lifeline for thousands of educated Kenyans. After OpenAI released ChatGPT in 2022, students decided it was cheaper to let AI do the job, and the gig work dried up — a warning for online workers worldwide.
That was a lifeline for me, I needed the money. I could not sleep that night. I was ready to burn the midnight oil.
- jandrese
How come I didn't know that everyone else was cheating in college? Here I was learning the content like a sucker and then being useful in my job after graduation.
- specproc
I spent a lot of my life outside the English-speaking world, and this was a small sideline for a while.
I get it wasn't the nicest way to earn a living. My day job was loftier but poorly-paid.
Still, I've got respect for anyone who got by doing this, it can be fun and interesting with the right material, but the clients are often dicks and the money is rubbish. It's quite stressful too, even given the low stakes. I never wanted a bad grade.
My more significant sideline, and the one that ultimately got me into good work, was copy-editing. Also dead by AI.
It's hard not to be bitter about this. I needed those jobs to keep me going whilst I made it in my chosen field. The rich kids in my sector never had to hustle and won't be affected. The folks doing it out of Nairobi, and the state school kids trying to get by overseas will.
A case of AI pulling the ladder.
- Teknoman117
I didn’t realize how many people cheated in college until I got an email from my computer graphics professor a year after I graduated asking me to remove the projects I did for the class from GitHub because a substantial amount of his students were copying from them.
Flattering, in a way.
- monster_truck
Never went to college, but I made pretty good coin writing papers for friends who did.
It's always been my understanding that virtually everyone cheats (doctors/non-computer engineers aside)
- tantalor
> helping faraway students studying engineering, medicine and computer science to finish their [degree]
What odd phrasing. Counterpoint: "Helping" them cheat actually harms them, by ensuring they get the degree without learning or demonstrating mastery of the subject. There's a good reason why students caught cheating are harshly punished.
- pseudolus
- cheriot
Something about large debts and widespread cheating makes me think we don't need so many students staying for 4 years.
Maybe more coop programs and less class time.
- red_admiral
When AI watermark detection is properly up and running, there may yet be a market here.
As long as the Kenyans don't try and use AI themselves.