Can We Trust AI Detection? Inside Pangram Labs

What happens when we start relying on AI a little too much?

In this episode of A Journalist’s Guide to AI, I talk with Max Spero, co-founder of Pangram Labs, about AI verification—and the deeper questions behind it. Not just can we detect AI-generated text, but why it matters for how we learn, communicate, and trust one another.

Max describes AI as “a fairly new paradigm,” and one of the risks he keeps coming back to is subtle yet serious: when we overuse AI, we may not learn as effectively as we think.

There are millions of AI use cases and no shortage of people building new tools. But Max says the reason he started Pangram is a bigger concern about the future of communication itself.

Some people imagine a future where AI agents mostly talk to other AI agents. “To me,” Max says, “that’s a grim future.”

We talk about why many AI detection tools fail, how false positives can cause real harm in newsrooms and classrooms, and why verification should support accountability—not punishment.

This conversation is for journalists, educators, and anyone trying to think clearly about what it means to keep humans, learning, and trust at the center of an AI-driven world.

Learn more

• Max Spero: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxspero

• Pangram Labs: https://pangramlabs.com

• Pangram AI Detection Tool: https://pangramlabs.com/product