Resistance to AI-written job applications spreads among employers

Employers are growing more resistant to job applications written with AI, according to a new recruitment analysis from the Danish consultancy Ballisager. Half of the employers who took part say an application loses its value if the applicant had ChatGPT write it.

Morten Ballisager, who founded the firm, describes a growing fatigue among companies and says a certain "AI weariness" has set in. The article's headline quotes the sentiment more bluntly: employers are "about to throw up" over such applications.

The backdrop is a surge in volume. Since ChatGPT launched in 2022, the average number of job applications worldwide has risen by 239 percent. AI has added an extra layer to the recruitment process, as applicants can produce polished applications quickly and employers have more of them to sort through.

The piece was published in Finans on 12 October 2026 and written by journalist Lars Nielsen. The excerpt available covers only the opening of the article, so it does not go into further findings from the analysis, such as how employers tell AI-written applications apart or what they are doing in response.

The significance lies in the tension the figures point to. AI tools make it easier to apply, which drives up application numbers, while a large share of the employers receiving those applications see AI-written material as worth less. That puts pressure on how both applicants and recruiters handle hiring.