What Happens When AI Tech Edits Your Knit or Crochet Pattern?

I tried it with my own free dishcloth pattern. Here is the original:

BASIC DISHCLOTH

YARN-Lily Sugar’n Cream Super Size Yarn, one ball
MATERIALS-
US H/8 (5.0mm)
Yarn needle
DIFFICULTY-Begginer
FINISHED SIZE-5½”x 6¼”/14cm x 16cm  
GAUGE-13 sc x 15 rows = 4” /10cm square 
ABBREVIATIONS-
ch(s) – chain(s)
sc – single crochet
st(s) – stitch(es)

NOTES-This is a super-easy begginer pattern to make one dishcloth. This pattern is suitable for learn to crochet classes.

PATTERN
Ch 22. 
Row 1; Sc in second loop from hook. Sc to end of row. 24 sts.
Row 2: Ch 1 (ch1 does not count as st), sc to end of row
Repeat row 2 for 18 total rows.

FINISHING
Cut yarn. Fasten off. Weeve in ends.

Then I asked AI to edit this pattern, highlighting errors and inconsistencies. Here’s what AI gave me:

Basic Dishcloth Pattern
Designer: That Metzbower Girl Designs, 2022
Difficulty: Beginner
Finished Size: 5½” x 6¼” (14 cm x 16 cm)
Gauge: 13 sc x 15 rows = 4” (10 cm) square
Materials Needed:

• Yarn: Lily Sugar’n Cream Super Size Yarn (1 ball)
• Hook: H/8 (5.0 mm)
• Notions: Yarn needle

Abbreviations:

• ch(s) – chain(s)
• sc – single crochet
• st(s) – stitch(es)

Pattern Instructions

1. Foundation Chain:
   Ch 22.
2. Row 1:
   Sc in the second loop from the hook. (This should be “chain” instead of “loop.”) Sc across to the end of the row. (24 sts)
3. Row 2:
   Ch 1 (this ch does not count as a st). Sc across to the end of the row.
4. Repeat Row 2 for a total of 18 rows.
   (This will result in 19 rows total, including Row 1. If the intention is to have 18 rows of sc after the foundation, it should be specified.)

Finishing

• Cut yarn and fasten off.
• Weave in ends.

Notes:

• The pattern should clarify whether to count the starting row as part of the total row count.
• Make sure to double-check that the finished size matches the number of rows worked.

The results?

But, what else is happening behind the scenes?

I talked to an AI expert about what happens when AI is used, and whether it was a good idea to use AI when writing or editing a pattern. Chris recommended that you check terms and conditions for the AI program you use. It is highly likely that the AI service owns every bit of data you enter and stores it for future use. Currently, there are a lot of writers that are suing AI companies for copyright infringement. It is quite possible that the next user that ask AI to write them a crochet dishcloth pattern will receive parts of my pattern as a result. This is because AI is simply a really sophisticated search engine.

AI cannot reason or rationalize. It can generate a response based upon the data it has to pull from, but it is never a good replacement for human thought, creativity, and reasoning. ~ Chris Davis, 38North Security’s Principal of Emerging Technologies

So, no! Don’t try to use AI to edit or write patterns. It won’t give you good results, and it will likely store your intellectual property to hand over to the next user that asks for it.

So what can you do with AI to help develop or grow your business? Stay tuned for my next blog post on AI in the Knitting and Crochet World!