‘Not AI’: Caine Prize 2026 winner will not lose his Sh1.7m prize, after probe

The Zimbabwean writer who beat a Kenyan and four other African finalists to bag the 2026 Caine Prize for African Writing will not have his victory overturned.

Simbarashe Steyn Kundizeza has now been confirmed as the winner after the board of trustees for the prize concluded its investigations into allegations that his story, “The Blue Fighter”, was written with the help of artificial intelligence.

In an announcement made on Wednesday, the prize organisers said they had concluded that AI was not used.

One of the boldest lines in their statement was: “AI detection tools alone are not a reliable basis for determining authorship.”

The organisers said they opened their review on October 11 following an article by US-based The Atlantic under the title: “Yet another literary prize winner seems to be AI.”

In a statement, the prize organisers said their review included interviews with the author, the judges who declared him the winner and the people behind the publication where his story was first published. They said they also analysed the drafts that the author presented, showing the progression of the story.

“This analysis was conducted by an independent cyber security and digital forensic investigator,” they said in a statement.

Caine Prize chairperson Ellah Wakatama said in the statement: “From our detailed investigation, which was guided by a risk management framework that considered the people involved as well as data analysis, we feel the evidence is clear and have made the decision that Simbarashe’s award stands.”

She added: “We look forward to awarding as well as celebrating with Simbarashe in Zimbabwe before the end of the year.”

The statement said they reviewed four separate Word documents that were created as drafts before the final submission took place, noting that they constituted “up to 27 hours of writing/editing”.

“The author and publisher provided documentation showing the story’s development over time. The writer’s process started in April 2025 from ideation and completed in June 2025 after considerable communication with the poet that inspired the piece in question,” said the prize organisers.

“The review found no evidence that the story was produced using generative AI,” they added. “The board considers the matter closed.”

Simbarashe was unveiled as the winner in October, beating Kenya’s Gladwell Pamba, Cameroon’s Melara Mvogdobo, Nigeria’s Akinwande Jordan, and Egypt’s Yasmine Zohdi.

The Caine Prize winner bags £10,000 (Sh1.74 million), while each shortlisted author receives £500 (Sh87,219).

Following the controversy, the Caine Prize organisers said they have now put in place an AI policy that will be applicable for submissions for the 2027 judging cycle that will open on November 23.

The policy states that publishers must now make an AI declaration for all stories submitted for consideration.

Moreover, the shortlisted writers will also need to make an AI declaration. Judges have also been given guidance on how to assess and to raise concerns about AI use.

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