The organisers of the Caine Prize for African Writing have upheld Zimbabwean author Simbarashe Kundizeza’s victory after an independent investigation found no proof that artificial intelligence was used to produce his award-winning story.
The decision confirms Kundizeza as the recipient of this year’s £10,000 literary honour, equivalent to approximately $13,000, following controversy surrounding the originality of his submission, The Blue Fighter.
Chairperson of the prize’s board of trustees, Ellah Wakatama, announced the findings in a video shared on X, stating that the review established the work was entirely authored by a human being.
The inquiry was initiated after American publication The Atlantic published an article by journalist Vauhini Vara questioning the authenticity of the winning entry.
The report cited results from Pangram, an AI-detection platform, which allegedly classified the entire narrative as machine-produced.
Kundizeza rejected the claims, which triggered widespread debate online, including concerns among African literary figures that allegations of artificial intelligence misuse were disproportionately directed at writers from non-white backgrounds.
Explaining the verification process, Wakatama said the organisation adopted a people-focused approach, gathering accounts from the novelist, members of the 2026 judging committee and Shallow Tales Review, the publication that originally featured the piece.
The assessment also involved examining the author’s original drafts through independent digital forensic and metadata investigations conducted by a cybersecurity specialist.
The controversy follows similar disputes involving international literary competitions.
Trinidadian writer Jamir Nazir faced questions over alleged AI assistance after receiving the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, while Canadian-Haitian novelist Thélyson Orélien withdrew from consideration for France’s prestigious Goncourt award amid comparable accusations, which he has rejected.
Vara had earlier defended her reporting during an appearance on the BBC’s Front Row, explaining that previous winning entries from the Caine Prize had all been classified as human-written when examined using the same detection technology.
Kundizeza previously disclosed that his inspiration came from a poem performed by South African poet Vangile Gantsho during an event in Ghana the previous year. The piece explored her father’s fascination with constructing fish tanks.
He explained that he combined the inspiration with imagined elements drawn from his personal experiences around 2002, when Zimbabwe began experiencing serious economic difficulties.
By: Magdalene Agyeiwaa Sarpong