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Editing tool Grammarly has turned off its controversial "Expert Review" feature, which presented suggestions mimicking the writing styles of real journalists, authors, and academics.
The brand didn’t obtain any of the authors' consent, including that of writers Neil deGrasse Tyson and Stephen King. The feature used details of multiple tech writers, as spotted by The Verge, including some of the publication's own staff and others from Bloomberg, Digital Foundry, IGN, Tom's Guide, Rock Paper Shotgun, and others.
Grammarly's parent company, Superhuman, was hit with a class-action lawsuit on Thursday from Julia Angwin, one of the journalists quoted as an expert in its tool, Wired reports.
“Grammarly never sought or obtained consent from Ms. Angwin or the other 'Experts' whose names and identities Grammarly misappropriated in the Expert Review tool," according to the suit, which alleges that this conduct violated New York and California laws that require a person’s consent before using their name for commercial purposes.
The suit asks the court to ban Grammarly from using people’s names and identities without consent, which may stop Grammarly from reintroducing the feature or similar tools in the future.
It also asks Superhuman for compensation for the time the feature was live; it first launched in August 2025. Angwin wrote on LinkedIn, "I'm taking this action on behalf of not just myself, but everyone who spent years and decades refining their skills as a writer and editor, only to find an AI impersonating them."
A Superhuman spokesperson told Wired that it "built the agent to help users tap into the insights of thought leaders and experts and to give experts new ways to share their knowledge and reach new audiences. Based on the feedback we’ve received, we clearly missed the mark. We are sorry and will do things differently going forward.”
After coverage of the controversial feature picked up steam, Grammarly introduced an option for experts to opt out.