Yes, it’s OK to use AI as a job applicant, but don’t be sneaky about it

If you’re a current job seeker, you’ve probably used AI as part of the application process.

And that’s OK. The majority — 65% of job applicants, according to a 2025 market trends study — use AI at some point in the process, whether it’s to polish a cover letter, practice interviewing or, more questionably, to create work samples. 

The range of uses includes things applicants probably should be doing (mock AI interviews are no joke and will put you in the headspace to face the toughest job interviewer) to things you definitely shouldn’t, like falsifying literally anything. 
The idea that using AI during a job application process is cheating in all cases, doesn’t align with the attitudes of a majority of hiring professionals. A 2024 Zety study found that 66%  of hiring managers approve of applicants using AI.

The use of generative AI (models such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek and the tools they power) during the job application process is not without controversy. Amazon is implementing an AI detection process to help weed out applicants who use an AI assistant during their interviews. AI company Anthropic asks applicants not to use AI during the application process, despite the fact the jobs themselves will use AI tools. 

Fighting automation with automation

David Mostoller was at the end of his rope when he turned to generative AI during a frustrating cycle of applying for jobs and waiting for responses that never came.

The Philadelphia software engineer explained in a Technical.ly guest post in December how he broke the cycle after learning that automated application systems routinely filtered out resumes for lacking certain keywords. He used AI to analyze job listings against his resume, allowing him to optimize the resume for each specific job. It worked so well that he created an online tool called AI Resume Analyzer to help other job seekers.

“As more people tested the tool, their stories reminded me why I started: to empower job seekers to overcome an unfair system,” Mostoller wrote.

Jobseekers are using AI, and HR is expecting it

We asked members of the Technical.ly Slack community with hiring experience if they noticed applicants using AI, and if it impacted their decision to take the next step. Several of them chose to go by just their first names, remain anonymous or omit their workplaces to protect company details.

Katie, a member of Technical.ly’s public Slack who works for a design/development agency, has come to expect some amount of AI when reviewing resumes.

“Honestly we’re a little underwhelmed if there aren’t signs of using it,” she said. “So long as they’re not misrepresenting themselves, it’s totally fine.” 

That doesn’t mean anything goes. “If there are elements of the interview where we want to make sure they are doing the writing or coding, we put some parameters in place to suss it out,” Katie said. “It’s not fool-proof, but even just collaborating in a Google Doc provides some ‘protections.’”

Job applicants who try to hide their use of AI aren’t doing themselves any favors, said Mike, a DevSecOps and platform engineering lead.

“Most have tried to be sly about it,” he said. “I would welcome it if a candidate is transparent about how they’re using AI as a tool, but it’s not good enough yet to do the thinking for you.”

Let AI use demonstrate efficiency

AI is ultimately about efficiency, which is why so many HR departments use it in their hiring processes, and why more and more jobs require using AI to one extent or another. A lot of hiring managers do want to know that you know your way around AI and aren’t afraid of it.

“I’ve seen perfectly tailored cover letters and resumes coming in within seconds of posting a job,” said Louis Miller, partner at creative marketing agency Electric Kite. “And honestly, as long as they aren’t misrepresenting their experiences and expertise, I’m fine with it. Considering most of our roles are focused on finding efficiency while maintaining creativity and quality, it seems like a positive to me.”

An applicant’s apparent attitude toward AI can be telling: If an applicant acts like their detectable AI use — and it’s often detectable — is cheating, the prospective employer will possibly see it as cheating, too, even if they’re cool with applicants using AI during the process. 

“If I noticed something was entirely AI, we’d have a problem,” said Jen Reid, director of operations at the Tapp Network, who says once she suspects AI use, she runs it through a detector. 

Like others who have done hiring, she doesn’t consider AI a negative in all cases. “Idea generation or polishing — love to see it!” she said.

“I think at the end of the day there have been a few folks where [AI use has] been a marker that it’s not a good fit,” said a member of Technical.ly’s public Slack who chose to remain anonymous. “But if someone’s using an LLM to polish their own work/operate more efficiently, that’s maybe even a good thing.”