On August 15, 2026, at the Shanghai Exhibition Center Friendship Hall, Mo Yan addressed the 2026 Shanghai Book Fair. During his discussion on AI writing, Mo stated that artificial intelligence can only piece together and stir past works, arguing it lacks the ability to generate masterworks like the Yueyang Tower Record or the Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng.
The Bottom Line
- The Event: Mo Yan made an appearance at the 2026 Shanghai Book Fair, his first in 14 years, selling out all 770 entry slots instantly for his new short story collection, People (《人呐》).
- The AI Debate: Addressing artificial intelligence, Mo argued that while AI can handle technical forms like regulated verse, its output remains mere compilation.
Inside Mo Yan’s Shanghai Book Fair Return
Mo Yan, China’s first Nobel laureate in literature, stepped back onto the Shanghai Book Fair stage on the afternoon of August 15, 2026, marking a 14-year hiatus from the event. His arrival served to launch his latest work, a compact short story collection titled People (《人呐》).
The reception was immediate and overwhelming. All 770 ticketing slots for the sharing and book-signing session vanished the moment they went live. Joined on stage by screenwriter and author Song Fangjin, Mo unpacked the DNA of his 81-story collection. Originally considered under the title Yidou Pavilion Notes, youthful peers pushed for the current title because it felt closer to the everyday pulse of ordinary readers.
Mo isn’t just offering up traditional prose. He pointedly positioned these 81 distinct, character-driven narratives against the output of modern screen media. If adapted into short-form streaming dramas, he noted, his stories would offer more literary depth and cognitive friction than standard “binge-watch pulp.”
Drawing the Line Between Technical Skill and Literary Soul
The conversation pivoted to generative artificial intelligence. Mo offered an assessment of machine creativity.
According to Mo, artificial intelligence excels when deployed on rigid, highly technical parameters. If a writer needs strict rhyme schemes and exact parallel structures—such as classical regulated verse or parallel prose (骈体文)—algorithms can execute the mechanics flawlessly.
Mo emphasized that no matter how sophisticated an algorithm becomes, AI cannot forge immortal classics like the Yueyang Tower Record or the Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng. Nor could it ever replicate the works of Li Bai, Du Fu, or Qu Yuan.
| Parameter | Human Literary Creation | Artificial Intelligence Output |
|---|---|---|
| Core Mechanism | Human creation | Statistical pattern matching, textual compilation, and lexical stirring |
| Technical Formats | Storytelling | High-efficiency execution of strict rules (e.g., regulated verse, parallel prose) |
| Legacy Benchmark | Generation of enduring masterworks | Dependent on human output; stalls if primary artistic generation ceases |
Why the Creator Economy’s Future Rests on Human Friction
Mo outlined the core limitation of machine generation, noting that AI’s creative process is fundamentally built on “patchwork” and “stirring” the works of predecessors to synthesize a facsimile of novelty.
Mo asserted a vital symbiotic reality: if all writers and artists stop their creation, the progress of AI would also stop.
The Final Word on Cultural Autonomy
What do you think?
