Zimbabwean author Simbarashe Kundizeza has denied using artificial intelligence to write "The Blue Fighter," the short story that won this year's Cain
Zimbabwean author Simbarashe Kundizeza has denied using artificial intelligence to write “The Blue Fighter,” the short story that won this year’s Caine Prize for African Writing.
The story won the prize on October 6, and five days later The Atlantic published an article by journalist Vauhini Vara claiming it was written with AI.
Kundizeza, who said the story was inspired by his family’s experiences, also suggested that AI-detection technology is biased.
He responded on X, writing: “I did not use generative AI to write it.”
The claim rests largely on software. Vara bases it mainly on Pangram, an AI-detection tool, which flagged the story as almost entirely AI-generated.
She also said she had read a 2021 story by Kundizeza that was different in tone and style.
Kundizeza said he has correspondence with his editor from 2025 showing how the story moved from first draft to final version.
The Caine Prize has said it is investigating the matter.
Its chair, Ellah Wakatama, told the BBC she wished The Atlantic had investigated more thoroughly, beyond the software, before publishing and risking damage to the prize and its winner.
The Radical Books Collective described the case as part of a wider pattern in which Black authors are targeted in AI and plagiarism scandals.
It follows a similar accusation in July against Trinidadian writer Jamir Nazir, who won a Commonwealth Foundation prize.
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