HR edition
AI is being used in more and more parts of work. Rules and oversight are still lagging behind.
AI-generated text is easier to recognise, but the marker is not firm proof
A hidden marker makes text recognisable, as long as no one changes many words
OpenAI is adding invisible watermarks to text from its AI tools ChatGPT and Codex. This applies to users in the EU. The feature is called textGrain. The technology changes the choice of words slightly. A detector can recognise this pattern. A detector is a program that looks for a marker like this. The marker stays in the text if someone copies it and pastes it somewhere else. Readers cannot see the marker. It is built into a pattern in the text itself, not shown in a message alongside it. The rollout will take place over the coming weeks and applies to all subscriptions. The feature is available to users who are eligible. For HR, this matters for job adverts, internal messages and other text that employees create with AI. The marker makes AI-generated text easier to recognise. It does not prove it for certain. According to OpenAI, recognition falls from almost 100 per cent to less than 20 per cent if someone changes a quarter of the words. For now, the detector is available only to approved researchers and organisations. If the marker is missing, that does not prove a person wrote the text. So the marker alone is not a sound basis for deciding who wrote something. The next deadline in the EU is 2 December 2026. It applies to systems that were already on the market. This may be a good moment to discuss how you tell employees and candidates that you use AI to create text.
Background for subscribersThe reports show that AI-generated text can sometimes be recognised. But a watermark does not prove who wrote something. AI systems used in recruitment call for explanation, checks and human oversight. Meanwhile, the Dutch Data Protection Authority is preparing to oversee AI. It helps to be clear about where you use AI, which information employees may enter and who checks the results. The big accountancy firms are also putting more weight on human skills alongside AI.
AI in recruitment calls for explanations to candidates
In Europe, AI systems that filter job applications or assess candidates are generally considered high-risk. Recruitmenttech.nl lists the requirements that come with this: risk management, openness, documentation, good-quality data and human oversight. The article also covers the United States. There, AI ranks CVs and holds first interviews without a recruiter. Candidates also use AI for CVs and covering letters. As a result, the value of familiar selection methods needs to be looked at again. HR needs to know where AI is involved in its own recruitment process. It is just as important to tell candidates about it. It may help to list the steps in your selection process that use AI. Documentation must show what a system does. Human oversight means it is clear who checks the result. This does not make its use fair automatically. But it gives you a basis for checking it. A tool can speed up the first stage of selection. At the same time, candidates may be rejected unfairly. So being open with candidates is not just a legal matter. According to the article, it is also part of how candidates experience the application process. Human oversight only helps if the person's review is more than ticking a box.
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