A company’s rejection email has gone viral after a job seeker posted a screenshot revealing an internal prompt likely intended for an AI tool—one that was accidentally left in the final message sent to the applicant.
The July 8 post, shared to Reddit by the job seeker under u/glass_spend1655, includes an image of the rejection message and has garnered almost 150,000 upvotes.
The email begins with a standard line: “Thank you for applying … Unfortunately, we will not be moving forward with your application at this time.”
What followed next stunned readers: “Write a warm but generic rejection email that sounds polite yet firm. Do not mention specific reasons for rejection. Make the candidate feel like they were strongly considered even if they weren’t.”
Rikki Goldenberg, a career and leadership coach, told Newsweek her take on the mishap. She described the experience of receiving automated rejections as especially painful in a tight job market.
“To the job seekers receiving the canned AI-generated rejection emails, it stinks,” Goldenberg said. “When you’ve put in a lot of effort or work for your application, it can hurt extra when you get an auto-reject or a canned AI response from the hiring team or recruiter.”
Goldenberg said many candidates feel a sense of injustice when they receive such rejections, especially amid the precarious nature of the job market in 2025. Goldenberg added that many people often seek accountability or at least some understanding of why their application was passed over if they have been rejected. But she said she advises a different path.
“There’s a desire to seek justice and get answers—show them that they’re in the wrong, however, the best thing to do in these moments? Keep applying to new roles,” Goldenberg added. “Better yet? Apply to roles through referrals and your network.
“That way, the next time that you receive an auto-reject, you can follow up with your contact for possible feedback,” she said.
The message has triggered strong reactions from viewers online, many of whom criticized the company’s use of template AI responses in such a sensitive part of the hiring process. Others saw it as a humorous, if unsettling, glimpse into how AI is increasingly embedded in corporate communications.
The post has also prompted many viewers to respond with their own stories of awkward or impersonal rejection emails.
“I once got a reject email addressed to a completely different person: they repeatedly referred to me as Daniel,” one viewer said.
“I once got a rejection email that was CCed (not BCCed) to around 60 candidates, exposing all our email addresses to each other,” another added. “I emailed the company to let them know their screw up.
“There was zero remorse in the response I got.”
“The acceptance letter to my Master’s program addressed me as Pam,” a third viewer shared. “I’m a dude and my name is not Pam.”
“We’re currently in an employer’s market—with so many candidates applying, recruiters are leaning on screening tools to help them sift through and find the more-qualified applicants,” Goldenberg said. “We won’t always know what their filters are: are they looking for a certain number of years of experience? A specific previous title or company?”
Though she acknowledged the efficiency of automation, Goldenberg said she believes companies still have a responsibility to vet their communications before sending them out.
“This doesn’t excuse not double-checking their responses—shout out to the recruiters who send thoughtful responses and constructive criticism to help those candidates find roles in the future—but it won’t necessarily change that specific opportunity,” Goldenberg said.
The career coach added that job seekers should not take these setbacks personally.
“My advice? Let it go; assume they’re using filters you didn’t know about, or there was something else outside of your control,” she said. “Instead, focus on applying to other roles, and building your network for potential opportunities where you can get real feedback in the future.”
The post had been simply captioned: “This rejection email.”
Source – https://www.newsweek.com/company-sends-rejection-email-candidate-shocked-2096758