I've been a writer since 1978 when I was graduated from a prominent Journalism college at a major university. I've written hundreds of articles and many books and have made it to the NY Times, Wall Street Journal, and amazon.com bestseller list. I have to say that I use several of the phrases that you included that let you know that someone is using AI. Since I don't use AI to write articles, I am proof that such phrases are no indication of AI. These phrases have entered the lexicon and are used by many, if not millions of, writers.

There are several good points you've included in your article, but it is really not possible to judge whether AI has been used just because certain words or phrases appear in the article. In my experience, most so-called writers have little or no formal or real-world education in the art and science of writing, and these sorts of people tend to be hired for a lot of low-level positions. Their work is noticeable because it is rife with errors and a lack of command of the English language. And, perhaps they are using AI now. Their misuse of words (infamous, myth, enlightenment, etc.) is blaring, and certainly AI would not be so remiss.

You wrote: "They’re low-effort transition phrases that don’t mean much of anything. They’re fluff. Place-holders. Wasted word-count. Bad writing."

I simply don't agree. How is "a plethora of..." bad writing or fluff when "a lot of of" or "a great deal of" is not? The idea is to reach the reader, and we each have different choices of words to do so.

I am not a big fan of AI for several reasons, but I really don't think it's possible to know that AI has been used just because of the phrases that appear in an article. The main problem with AI is that human beings are being marginalized by their own inventions, which is something that's been going on since the beginning of technology a million years ago. Now things have gotten very sophisticated and we are facing an inhuman, inhumane, and compassion-free world. AI is a big part of this, whether we are trying to reach customer service or compete for a job with a machine that is cheaper and without emotion or insight. The problem with AI is a lack of consciousness, and those who use it are too often flippant and without conscience.