For decades, Microsoft Word and Google Docs have been the default tools for anyone who writes. Yet while these applications are familiar and reliable, they have changed little in recent years. At the same time, AI has burst onto the scene, promising to help us write faster and better, but often delivering results that feel generic and detached from our own voices. The question is, can writing software be reimagined for the AI age?
That is exactly the ambition behind TextJam, a new platform created by Pete DeLaurentis, an engineer and founder who has worked on everything from 3D scanners to large language models for pharmaceutical research. His mission is to reinvent the writing experience by combining human creativity with AI in a way that enhances skills rather than erodes them. “Writing is something so important and vital to us as humans,” he told me. “Finding ways to protect that creativity and continue to evolve the skill of writing is something I think is really important.”
Why AI Writing Needs A Rethink
Anyone who has tried using large language models like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini to produce written work knows the challenge. They can generate impressive text, but it rarely sounds like you. DeLaurentis compared the experience to working with “that kid in the group project that just does it all their way.” Instead of helping, the AI often takes over.
This is not a small problem. Writing is how we express ourselves and communicate ideas with impact. If all our documents start to sound like they were produced by the same machine, individuality is lost. There is also a risk of de-skilling, as people grow accustomed to outsourcing the craft of writing to algorithms. That is why the approach behind TextJam is so intriguing.
The Pen And Pencil Metaphor
The breakthrough idea behind TextJam is deceptively simple. The platform uses the metaphor of a pen and a pencil to help users signal intent to the AI. Anything written in pen is final and should remain unchanged. Anything written in pencil is a draft that the AI can refine, adapt, or expand. “It learns from the stuff you put in pen, so it matches your style,” explained DeLaurentis.
This allows writers to remain firmly in control. When inspiration flows, you can write in pen and preserve your own words. When you hit a block, you can switch to pencil and let the AI make suggestions that still sound like you. The result is a smoother, more intuitive collaboration that avoids the exhausting copy and paste process so many of us know from working between AI tools and our word processors.
TextJam also supports in-place prompting. Instead of writing long instructions in a separate chat box, you can leave small notes directly in the text to guide the AI. Want a sentence to be shorter, more dramatic, or to include another point? Just mark it, and the AI will adjust accordingly.
A Word Processor Built For The AI Era
TextJam is more than a clever metaphor. It reimagines the very interface of writing software. One standout feature is the pinch-to-resize function, which allows you to shrink or expand sections of text by simply using your trackpad or mouse. The AI instantly rewrites the content to fit the new length while preserving meaning and tone. DeLaurentis described it as “sculpting words like clay.”
Another innovation is the ability to go back in time with a “time traveler” feature. Every change is tracked, and you can view how a document has evolved, even playing back a short video of the process. This provides both transparency and accountability, which is particularly valuable in education and collaborative environments.
Transparency is central to TextJam’s design. The system tracks the origin of every word, whether it came from a human, an AI, or a collaborator. This creates a clear record of authorship that could prove vital in classrooms, publishing, and professional writing. “We show a summary so you can see how much the AI produced and how much you wrote,” said DeLaurentis. “You can even watch a short video showing the making of the document.”
Collaboration And Choice
One of the major limitations of existing word processors is their lack of integration with AI. While Word and Google Docs have started to bolt on AI assistants, these features feel like sidebars rather than core capabilities. TextJam, by contrast, was built around human-AI collaboration from the ground up.
It allows multiple users to work on a document simultaneously, each with their own choice of AI model. TextJam supports all major options, from OpenAI’s GPT family to Anthropic’s Claude, X’s Grok, and open-source models like Llama. This flexibility means users can experiment with different outputs and even get a “second opinion” from another model on the same draft.
Collaboration is enriched by real-time chat built directly into the platform. The AI participates too, ensuring that different viewpoints shared in the conversation are not lost as the document evolves. In effect, the AI acts as an advocate for contributors, reminding others of ideas that might otherwise be overlooked.
Why Word And Google Docs Should Be Worried
The dominance of Word and Google Docs has long seemed unshakeable. Yet as DeLaurentis pointed out, these platforms have barely changed in years. Their scale and stability make it difficult for them to introduce radical new features without disrupting their vast user bases. That creates an opening for startups like TextJam.
“Because AI is such a big sea change, it makes sense to rethink what a word processor should be,” DeLaurentis explained. By offering an experience that is both more powerful and more transparent, TextJam positions itself as the first serious challenger to the incumbents in decades.
Of course, Microsoft and Google could develop similar features over time. But as DeLaurentis noted, innovation inside large organizations often runs into inertia. Patents and technical challenges may also slow down the replication of TextJam’s most distinctive capabilities.
The Bigger Picture: AI As Creative Power Tools
What makes this story especially compelling is not just the technology, but the philosophy behind it. DeLaurentis is clear that AI should not replace human creativity; it should amplify it. “I really want people to be able to continue to become better writers using this tool,” he said. “The goal is to create power tools for humans, not to take over.”
That vision resonates at a time when there is growing anxiety about automation and the risk of human skills being eroded. Tools like TextJam suggest a different path, one where AI supports learning, collaboration, and creativity rather than undermining them.
Looking further ahead, DeLaurentis believes specialized writing models trained on high-quality curated data could elevate AI-generated text far beyond what today’s systems can achieve. He is also optimistic about AI’s potential in fields ranging from medicine to climate solutions. But the unifying theme is clear: technology should be applied with intention, and with the aim of improving the human experience.
A New Chapter For Writing
The history of word processing has been marked by a few big leaps, from the typewriter to WordPerfect, from WordStar to Microsoft Word and Google Docs. Each shift has changed how we think about writing. TextJam may represent the next chapter. By integrating AI in a way that protects human voice, ensures transparency, and enables true collaboration, it points to a future where writing is both more efficient and more personal.
If DeLaurentis is right, the future of writing will not be about machines replacing us. It will be about machines helping us express ourselves more clearly, more creatively, and more authentically. And that is a future worth writing about.
credit: Bernard Marr
