About the directory
What is the HumanProof Registry? HumanProof Registry is a public directory of works and authors that meet our standard of human-directed authorship. We list blogs, newsletters, books, journalism, and social media accounts where a human was responsible for the ideas, voice, and editorial decisions, whether or not they used tools along the way. Works in the directory carry one of two designations: Recognized (free, editorially assessed) or Certified (paid, formally verified).
What does “human-directed” mean? We don’t require that a work was produced with zero AI involvement. That standard is both unverifiable and increasingly out of step with how writers actually work. Our standard is this: a human made the creative and editorial decisions. The ideas, the argument, the voice, the judgment about what stays and what goes; a person was responsible for all of that. Tools may assist; humans must be accountable.
What we don’t list: content that is generated, lightly edited, and published at scale, where the human role is minimal or purely supervisory over machine output.
What types of content do you list? We currently list text-based works and authors across all these formats:
- Blog posts and personal essays
- Newsletters (Substack and others)
- Journalism and news writing
- Books and long-form writing
- Social media accounts with a sustained, genuine human voice
- Reports, research, and policy writing
What’s the difference between Recognized and Certified? Recognized means your work or author profile has been editorially assessed by our team and meets our human-directed standard. It’s free, and it gets you a listing in the public directory as Recognized.
Certified means you’ve gone through our full verification process (submitting drafts, version history, and process documentation) reviewed by independent human peers. Certification carries formal documentation suitable for professional, journalistic, or legal contexts, and a stronger Certified badge. Certification is a paid service.
Getting listed
How do I get listed in the directory? Two ways:
- Self-nomination: submit your work or profile for editorial review. If it meets our standard, we’ll add it as Recognized at no cost.
- Editorial selection: our team actively curates works and authors we find worthy of recognition. If we list you this way, we’ll notify you.
Can I nominate someone else’s work or a blog I follow? Yes. We welcome nominations of works and authors you think belong in the directory. Use the nomination form and we’ll take a look.
What if my nomination is declined? Declined nominations remain private. We may not always be able to explain the specific reason, but the most common reasons are: the work doesn’t clearly reflect human-directed authorship, or the body of work is too limited to assess meaningfully.
Certification (paid)
What evidence do I need to submit for Certification? The strongest submissions include a Word document with tracked changes across multiple sessions, or Google Docs version history showing the work evolving over time. Editor notes, research files, and draft timestamps all strengthen a submission. The clearer your process, the faster your review.
Do you use AI detection tools? No. AI detection tools are unreliable, gameable, and often produce false positives against entirely human writing. Our Certification process relies on real evidence of a human creative process (drafts, revisions, decisions) reviewed by human peers.
Can I disclose that I used AI tools and still be certified? Yes, with disclosure. Grammar tools, translation aids, and research assistants are fine when declared. Certification requires clear evidence of substantive human drafting and editorial judgment. If AI tools played a more significant role, we’ll assess each case on its merits.
How long does Certification take? Standard turnaround is within one week. Expedited review may be available. Contact us.
Can I appeal a Certification decision? Yes. Appeals may be submitted within 30 days with additional evidence at no extra cost.
How long is a Certification valid? Certifications are issued per work. Once certified, the work remains listed. For ongoing publications (a newsletter, a blog), we recommend renewing annually to reflect continued human authorship.