Workers are starting to talk like the chatbots they use
The shortcuts that get quick answers from chatbots can make people sound generic.
WSJ What's News · Why Businesses Can’t Budget for AIPeople who prompt chatbots at work are starting to talk like them, in meetings, group texts, and the office kitchen.
Wall Street Journal tech reporter Catherine Bindley calls it prompt speak. One habit is contrast framing, what Bindley described as "it's not this, it's that construction" that AI favors. One woman was called out after opening a morning meeting by saying, "This is not a morning meeting. It's a reset."
Another is caveman speak, very short orders that save time and money, because AI bills by tokens, chunks of text it reads or writes. So "Why no bullets?" strips a request to three blunt words. Founders in one group chat said that bluntness had spread to everyday talk.
A public relations professional told Bindley one risk is sounding generic and uninteresting. Asked why they started their companies, she says founders she talks to might list "the three key pillars and the market opportunity and the competitive differentiation" instead of telling how they began.
Questions people ask
Why do chatbots use that 'It's not this, it's that' phrasing so much?
Contrast framing is the 'it's not this, it's that' sentence shape, as in 'This is not a meeting. It's a reset.' Chatbots use it often because it sharply defines an idea by ruling out one thing and replacing it with another.
How can I tell if I am using prompt speak?
Listen for sentences that sound polished but vague, lists of three, and very short commands stripped of pleasantries. If your meeting opener could also work as a typed prompt, or colleagues tease you about sounding like a bot, you are probably doing it. Reading a draft aloud before sending can help catch it.
Does talking like AI actually hurt you at work?
In some jobs, being clear and brief is a plus. But when you are trying to persuade, interview, fundraise, or stand out, generic phrasing can hurt because stories are more memorable than lists. The public relations professional in the story said founders she talks to might recite pillars and differentiation instead of telling their origin story.