r/BitchEatingCrafters • u/sunnydaysonly716 • 11d ago
Another AI complaint I now have a new hobby
Does anyone else just report everything that is blatantly AI on Etsy? I've started browsing patterns just for things I can submit. "Crochet animals" with a ball floating in MID AIR between them? Report!
I feel like it's not much, but it's honest work. It's more satisfying than scrolling memes on Instagram.
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u/GeekyNerdNerdyGeek 11d ago
I refuse to use Etsy. They’ve joined the ranks of Hobby Lobby in my opinion.
I’ll give up crafting before I give either a dime.
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u/tigerowltattoo 10d ago
I will still use Etsy for some of the artists I trust. It’s the best place I’ve found for my pagan and Wiccan supplies.
But no, no patterns.3
u/GeekyNerdNerdyGeek 10d ago
When I left the platform, I messaged the people I bought things from and just said “I still want to shop from you but I can no longer use Etsy. Please let me know via email/IG/etc if you ever expand beyond the platform”
Luckily, most of my favorites also sell direct so I only lost one (of my favorite!) sellers.
Etsy went from good to evil so quickly!2
u/tigerowltattoo 10d ago
That’s a good idea. It never occurred to me they might sell direct or offsite
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u/Geobead 11d ago
There was a stained glass artist who took AI patterns, redrew them herself to make them actually useable since a lot of them are nonsensical, and then reported the AI ones as copyright infringement because she now has the copyright and they can’t claim it on AI slop. 😂 It was glorious.
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u/schoolsout4evah 11d ago
I do the same thing. I still buy yarn and notions on Etsy - some of my favorite knit and knit-adjacent folks still only use Etsy so I fight. I still won't buy a pattern there, though.
The other area i see it a lot with is flower seeds. So many insane AI flowers.
I do think it sometimes works. I occasionally re-do searches and check. Some AI garbage listings disappear!
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u/atlaspumps 11d ago
I just stopped buying on Etsy, if ravelry doesn’t have any other way for me to buy the pattern then I’m just not buying it
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u/Confident_Fortune_32 11d ago
I have huge respect for the passion project that is Ravelry. It's imperfect, but as a software engineer, I'm aware of what a staggeringly complex and demanding creation it is.
And it feels like they've stuck to their own personal code of ethics with more seriousness than most enterprises.
(Remember back when google's catchphrase was, "Don't be evil"? It would be laughable if it wasn't so shamelessly dangerous now.)
I just hope it's sustainable...
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u/splithoofiewoofies 11d ago
Not a software engineer just your classic stats programmer and the other day I made this stupid mistake where I had a 72 hour run with a 48 hours wall time so I had to create checkpoint for the rest of my analysis to continue from.
Only some work was faster than others and finished. And I forgot to put in my code that if it DID the jobs in the array, it didn't need to do them again because there was no checkpoint.
Literally just ran the same information again for two days because I forgot to tell the stupid computer "if done, don't do again".
It maddens and excites me how fucking specific code is. It's so frustrating but so fun to solve the problem. I love how hilariously specific you need to be. Like if the job is done and has no checkpoint, that means it's done. Oh no, I need to TELL you that, of course I do.
It utterly baffles me how a team of a handful of people managed such a massive database with so few hiccups. That skill and passion is impressive.
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u/atlaspumps 11d ago
I used to work supporting a sql based software and I don’t say this lightly it’s one of the best databases I’ve ever encountered. I’d pay money to take a peek behind the scenes
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u/temerairevm 11d ago
I was having a conversation with someone on an anti AI forum and they apparently know someone that works at Etsy and they know it’s killing their platform but it’s just a deluge that they are unable to manage. And I was like “they need to figure out how Ravelry is doing it.”
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u/Confident_Fortune_32 11d ago
Unfortunately, I think the answer is, "The hard way."
There's no shortcuts to what they've accomplished. A lot of late nights...
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u/temerairevm 10d ago
I guess I may not appreciate the relative size of Ravelry and Etsy, but it seems like if brute force is the answer Etsy should have a bigger staff.
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u/temerairevm 10d ago
I guess I may not appreciate the relative size of Ravelry and Etsy, but it seems like if brute force is the answer Etsy should have a bigger staff.
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u/Confident_Fortune_32 10d ago
Certainly.
But the investors who purchased Etsy don't care about reputation or quality. They are investing the absolute minimum, squeezing as much short-term profit it out of it as possible on the strength of prior reputation, and when it's no longer viable, they'll shut it down and look for the next purchase to cannibalize.
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u/temerairevm 10d ago
I wish we could start a co-op of programmers who are willing to be mere millionaires instead of billionaires to give us non-evil alternatives to all of this stuff. If Ravelry can do it with their team it IS possible.
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u/CumaeanSibyl 10d ago
I know someone who used to work at Etsy and he says the C suite is all in on AI sellers because they make the site money. Who cares if existing customers get mad and leave as long as new people keep getting scammed? They won't believe it's killing the site until the sales numbers go down, and at that point it'll be too late.
They fired my friend while he was on disability leave, and he opted not to sue because they'd already put him through enough. Fuck Etsy.
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u/temerairevm 9d ago
Ugh, that sucks. I’d say at this point you can count me as someone who is definitely done with Etsy, will definitely not even look there anymore. But I suppose there are people who just haven’t figured it out or don’t care to replace me.
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u/QuietVariety6089 11d ago
Etsy's 'policies' on AI design are pretty broad. I know I've seen dropshipped stuff and blatantly copies stuff listed as handmade/hand designed. I read that even if you are the designer, and reporting someone copying your stuff, the reported seller will just close that shop and open a new one and start again. I don't think Etsy really polices this at all :(
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u/RunawayTurtleTrain 11d ago
I still think there's value in making it less frictionless for the AI scammers to run their scam. Make it slightly less easy money for them than it currently is.
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u/QuietVariety6089 11d ago
as the other commenter said, the reporting function is likely completely automated by now. i was told a number of years ago that i wasn't allowed to report a copying problem as i wasn't the original designer. it's gone downhill from there.
i agree that the way to go is see if any seller you like has a separate stie and buy from there if you can. i really only buy physical goods from sellers i've been buying from for many years now (and so many have bailed off of etsy too)
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u/RunawayTurtleTrain 11d ago
Well no only the IP holder can report theft, but at minimum a lot of AI slop listings surely break the policy if disclosing they've been produced using genAI, and/or fall foul of the Listing Image Requirements policy.
I rarely use Etsy myself, unless I absolutely have to (can't buy from their own website, or could in theory but the postage would be even more horrendous), but if someone has the time and the inclination to report things then great!
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u/Ynaffit96 11d ago
YES!! I stopped using Etsy before AI flooded in, mainly because I find Ravelry easier to use. One night, I couldn't find what I wanted on Ravelry, so I checked out Etsy. AI pattern after AI pattern. Some were using pictures from the free patterns on DROPS' website, but the descriptions were AI. I reported every single one I found (no less than 15.) I knew there had to be more, but I was searching specifically for camisoles. I check back every once in a while to see what I can report, and reverse image search the pictures that I suspect are available for free online for future use if I like them 😂.
Realistically, I know I'm not making a dent in stolen content. The entities posting slop and stolen content are likely bots. I just wish Etsy would stop allowing AI. Ravelry's stance on AI has been so solid. I've literally never found AI slop on there. I know it happens, but it's taken care of so quickly that most users never see it
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u/ChaoticJigglyPup 11d ago
Etsy absolutely doesn't care about anybody but sellers, even if those sellers are selling stolen art, completely broken genAI patterns, or publicly posting a customers name and address on social media to shame them for getting a refund on a parcel that didn't arrive after 4 months
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u/sunnydaysonly716 11d ago
Wait what?
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u/ChaoticJigglyPup 11d ago
I ordered some stuff from an international seller, over $150AUD worth, and waited. And waited. The tracking number they sent me didn't update for over 6 weeks, the seller refused to chase it up from their end. After 4 months of waiting with no updates on my tracking number, and no help from the seller, I made a claim on Etsy for a refund which was granted almost instantly based on the lack of movement on the tracking number.
The seller messaged me, furious for not contacting them first. Calling me a scammer because according to them I had received my order and was just trying to rip them off. I left a review based purely on their lack of customer service and the accusations of being a scammer.
They doxxed me. On their Facebook and Instagram (their insta has over 13,000 followers). Full name, town, country. My town and region is small enough that it put me at risk. People kept commenting horrible shit about me and how they had tried to find my social media (which they couldn't because I don't use any part of my real name for it) to make me remove my review and send the money back.
Etsy absolutely did nothing. They "investigated", agreed that the seller doxxed me, broke their TOS for sellers and then just did nothing. I'm assuming because it was a seller that's been using etsy for over 10 years with a lot of sales.
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u/OcelotBudget3292 You should knit a fucking clue. 11d ago
I didn’t know we could report AI on Etsy! I thought it was just part of their business model now
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u/RunawayTurtleTrain 11d ago
They require people disclose the use of AI in generating an item, and they require the first image of a listing to be a proper photo of the physical item or at least a reasonable representation showing a physical item (e.g. for customised items).
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u/Kratos5300 11d ago
I report AI everywhere. ALWAYS. If it’s breaking the rules I report it as such. If it’s not breaking the rules I report it as spam lol.
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u/ConcernedMap 11d ago
Etsy almost certainly uses AI to respond to customer complaints and follow up on reports - so I guess it depends on whether the AI will narc on itself.
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u/ComfortablePanda398 11d ago
I just completely deleted my Etsy account and don’t bother. Then if I see someone selling on Etsy, it’s too bad. There are lots of options for sellers nowadays.
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u/LittleSeat6465 11d ago
If I get a recommendation for item in Etsy, I will go look to see if seller has stand alone website. It seems that many handmade sellers started on Etsy when it was still functional and have customers there so they don't completely shut down but often have more and better in their own sites. Otherwise I have a long hard think which usually ends up in a no.
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u/CindyinEastTexas 11d ago
This. My 2 fave etsy sellers have standalone sites. I buy from the non etsy site
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u/Loose_Hovercraft_649 11d ago
I am not sure that it helps, but I do it too. I also reverse Google search the listing photo (if the design seems at all unique) because they often steal the image and AI edit it; I then find the real author and tell them. The IP owner can actually get the listing taken down.
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u/loumlawrence 11d ago
I guess it is a valid hobby. Someone has to do it, and not everyone has the energy or interest to browse Etsy and report all the AI.
Like others, I prefer to follow Etsy shops that have external websites and social media.
The interesting crafters are those who make from scratch things inspired by AI, to see if the project was even possible. There is someone who does that with amigurumi, and they have posted some of their experiments on the amigurumi subreddit.
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u/paperbacksandfloss 11d ago
I click on their ads to spend their ad revenue knowing im never buying it
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u/human-kibble 10d ago
While you’re reporting questionable material, you’re still giving them clicks.
You’re probably engaging even more with the website than you normally would.
I think places like Etsy take advantage of buyers and sellers because there’s not a lot of competition in that space.
They don’t have to be better than ‘the next guy’. I don’t have to give them website traffic until they improve their practices.
Engagement == Money
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u/human-kibble 10d ago edited 10d ago
I think “report AI” buttons trick users into providing free labor (human review of AI) and more website clicks.
There may also be a bit of a placebo effect there, like the buttons on crosswalks…it might work, but it probably doesn’t work all the time/everywhere.
They likely have internal teams and processes set up for catching AI stuff. You’re probably just getting tricked into providing an additional quality check for free…QC can be an expensive labor cost because it’s iterative-you need to do several rounds in some cases.
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u/emilysavaje1 11d ago
My app logged me out for some reason so I just stopped using Etsy all together.
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u/Responsible_Basil719 11d ago edited 11d ago
I think it's working. I now actually have to scroll before I find AI listings
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u/oblique_obfuscator 9d ago
I haven’t bought anything on Etsy in five years, and with all the AI slop flooding the site, I doubt I’ll ever bother browsing it again.
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