Grammarly’s AI tool mimicked experts without their consent. Now it’s being sued

Published
Score
9

Why it matters

Grammarly, owned by Superhuman Platform Inc., launched its "Expert Review" AI tool in August 2025, allowing users to pay $12/month for real-time writing feedback mimicking styles and advice from prominent figures like journalist Julia Angwin, author Stephen King, and Neil deGrasse Tyson—without obtaining their consent.[1][Input Summary] On March 12, 2026 (noted as "Wednesday" in reports), Angwin filed a class-action lawsuit in the U.S. Southern District of New York, alleging misappropriation of names and identities for commercial gain, violating New York and California privacy and publicity rights laws; the suit seeks class certification, an injunction, and damages for affected journalists, authors, editors, and others.[1][Input Summary]

Key parties include plaintiff Julia Angwin (The Markup founder), represented by attorney Peter Romer-Friedman of Peter Romer-Friedman Law PLLC; defendant Superhuman Platform Inc. (Grammarly's parent), led by CEO Shishir Mehrotra, who announced plans to phase out the tool on LinkedIn the same day, calling the claims meritless while committing to a consensual future version.[1][Input Summary] No specific agencies are involved yet, but the case invokes state laws on right of publicity.

The tool emerged amid rapid AI adoption for writing aids, building on Grammarly's core grammar/plagiarism features, but sparked backlash over unauthorized use of likenesses—echoing broader AI ethics debates like deepfakes and IP disputes (e.g., Disney's cease-and-desist to Google).[Input Summary] It's newsworthy now due to the fresh filing (just days ago as of March 15, 2026), Superhuman's simultaneous tool sunset and defensive response, and its spotlight on escalating "identity wars" in AI, where workers in automatable fields like writing face uncompensated digital cloning amid a surge in related lawsuits.[1][Input Summary][3]

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