How to prove a document is not AI generatedYou cannot prove a negative; you can show your process and the version history

TimeBinder adds a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes.

The file stays on your device. Your browser makes a digital fingerprint of the file. TimeBinder records the fingerprint and the time, not the file.

Short answer

You cannot prove a negative, and AI text detectors are unreliable, so a score will not settle it. What helps is showing your process: notes, drafts, version history and dated copies. A TimeBind dates an exact file; it does not prove who wrote it or how.

Why a detector score will not do it

AI text detectors can flag human writing as machine-written and miss real AI text, so a score is not proof either way (see are AI detectors accurate?). Being accused of AI use is stressful, but arguing with a percentage rarely helps. Evidence of how the document was made is stronger.

Useful evidence includes the version history in Google Docs or Word, which shows edits over time; handwritten or typed notes and outlines; the sources you read; earlier drafts; and your ability to explain and discuss the work. Keep these as you go rather than reconstructing them later. If a school or client sets rules on AI use, read them and note what you did. Our assignment AI use checklist helps you record that.

Be honest about what you used. If you did use AI for a step such as grammar or brainstorming and the rules allow it, say so.

Dated copies of your drafts

A TimeBind can date copies of your drafts and final file. It records a SHA-256 fingerprint and a time, anchored to Bitcoin; the fingerprint is made in your browser and the file is not uploaded. It shows each exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches, which supports a timeline of your work.

It does not show who wrote the text, that no AI was used, or that the content is original.

Make a TimeBind: first one free →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. An ASAP TimeBind is US$15.

Frequently asked questions

Can anyone prove a document is not AI generated?

Not with certainty. You can show supporting evidence of your process, such as drafts, notes, sources and version history, but it is evidence, not a mathematical proof.

Do AI detectors prove a document is AI written?

No. They can be wrong in both directions and should not be treated as a verdict.

What is the best evidence of human writing?

A trail made as you work: version history, dated drafts, notes and sources, plus being able to explain the work.

Does a TimeBind prove I wrote something without AI?

No. It shows a file existed no later than a recorded time and still matches. It does not show who wrote it or whether AI was used.

Sources

TimeBinder, Are AI detectors accurate?
TimeBinder, Assignment AI use checklist.

Related guides and tools

Your file’s fingerprint, anchored to a global network secured by real electricity and cryptography.

Editing a file—including with AI—changes its fingerprint, not its existing network record.

How this works

Your file’s SHA-256 fingerprint, a short code worked out from its exact contents, is made in your browser, and the file itself stays on your device. A cryptographic commitment to that fingerprint, which may be combined with others, is then anchored in a block on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin is secured by proof of work: computers around the world spend real electricity to add each block, and changing an earlier block would mean redoing that work faster than the rest of the network. Until that block is confirmed, your proof is pending. Once the Bitcoin anchoring is confirmed, you can verify the proof against that recorded commitment. The confirmed record can then be checked; Pooled TimeBinds are checked through TimeBinder, while ASAP TimeBinds can also be checked independently. If you check the file later and its fingerprint still matches, that shows the file existed no later than the recorded time. The record doesn’t show who made the file, whether AI was used, or that its contents are true.

Your filestays on your device
FingerprintSHA-256
Network timestampon Bitcoin

Record a fingerprint of the file you rely on

Add a layer of protection against AI and human fraud and disputes: a dated, checkable record of the exact file you hold.

Open the app and sign in with email or Google.
Add your files. They stay on your computer.
Seal them and download your Proof of Time certificates.

Open TimeBinder →

First Pooled TimeBind free, no card, then from US$5. See pricing.