KDP AI Disclosure: AI-Assisted vs AI-Generated, and Where a Coached Novel Stands
On KDP, you must disclose "AI-generated" content when the text, images or translation were produced by an AI tool, even if you edited them afterwards; you do not need to disclose "AI-assisted" content, meaning you wrote it yourself and used AI to edit, refine, error-check or brainstorm. A novel written with coaches who ask questions and never draft a sentence falls in the second category. Here is the policy as of September 23, 2026, examples by use case, and what it means for your manuscript.
What the KDP policy says as of September 23, 2026
Since 2023, the publishing form has included a question about AI. Amazon separates two situations:
| Category | KDP definition (paraphrased) | Disclose? |
|---|---|---|
| AI-generated content | Text, images or translations created by an AI tool, including when you applied substantial edits afterwards | Yes, at publication |
| AI-assisted content | You created the content yourself and used AI to edit, refine, error-check or brainstorm | No |
Two details matter. The disclosure is made title by title and does not appear on the product page; Amazon uses it internally and reserves the right to reject a book that breaks its content guidelines. And the responsibility stays yours: you certify that the text, generated or not, respects other people's rights. The policy can move, so check the KDP help page the day you publish.
AI-assisted or AI-generated: examples by use case
The question is not "did you use AI" but "who produced the words".
| What you did | Category | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You asked a chatbot for feedback on chapter 3, then rewrote it yourself | Assisted | The final text is yours |
| An AI checker flagged typos and repetitions, you decided what to keep | Assisted | Editing and error-checking |
| You listed ten possible titles with an AI, then picked yours | Assisted | Brainstorming |
| You had a description paragraph generated and kept it, even reworked | Generated | The words come from the tool |
| You had your novel translated by an AI, then proofread it | Generated (translation) | The translation is produced by AI |
| Your cover comes out of an image generator | Generated (image) | Same rule for images |
The most common grey area: the suggested sentence you paste. An AI proposes a rewording, you paste it as is. One isolated sentence does not make a generated book, but if the gesture repeats across dozens of passages, you drift into the first column in practice. Simple rule: if you can no longer say which words are yours, disclose.
Where a coached novel stands
Take Lena, who is writing "The Tides of Kerlouan" in the Sagoræ workshop. Théo asked her what her heroine really wants in chapter 5. The Archivist reminded her the lighthouse was red in chapter 2 and white in chapter 9. Dédale talked through the order of two scenes with her. The AI Proofreader underlined three adverbs and a moral at the end of a paragraph. None of the four drafted a sentence: that is how they are built. Every word of the manuscript was typed by Lena.
On KDP, her novel is AI-assisted content. She does not tick the "generated" box. If in doubt, she can reread her exchanges with the coaches: questions, reminders, flags, never a passage to paste.
This line between a tool that generates and a tool that accompanies is drawn in AI-free, AI-generated, AI-coached: three families of tools. And if your real question is ethical rather than administrative, it has its answer in is using AI to write a novel cheating?.
Why disclose honestly
Three reasons. The first is practical: your KDP account is your only channel to Amazon, and a false disclosure that gets caught can lead to the title being removed, or the account closed. The second concerns rights: generated text is not protected the way human-written text is, as explained in AI and copyright: who owns assisted text?. The third concerns your readers: the box is not public today, but nothing guarantees it will stay that way, and an author who knows exactly what they wrote has nothing to fear from a rule change.
The rest of the path (manuscript export, metadata, royalties) is covered in how to self-publish on Amazon KDP in 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to disclose a novel proofread by AI on KDP? No. Proofreading, editing and error-checking count as AI-assisted content, which is not disclosed. You only need to be able to say the words are yours.
Is the AI disclosure visible to readers? As of September 23, 2026, no: Amazon uses it internally. The policy can change, which is one more reason to disclose accurately from the start.
Is a novel written with the Sagoræ coaches "AI-generated"? No. Théo, the Archivist, Dédale and the AI Proofreader ask, remind and flag; they never write a sentence. The text remains entirely the author's, so it is "assisted".
What if I only generated the blurb? The product description is not the book's content, but to be safe, rewrite it yourself: it is short, and it is your first sales pitch.
If you want to write a novel where every word is yours, with coaches who never take the keyboard, Sagoræ offers a free trial, no card required.
✒️ Read next: How to Get Published in 2026: Agents, Editors and What Really Happens After You Submit · How to Write a Query Letter That Gets Read: Template and 3 Annotated Examples · How to Write a Novel Synopsis: The One-Page Method, With an Example
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