TL;DR
- 5 telltale signs of AI-generated English: overly formal, no contractions, passive voice overload, templated phrases, and avoiding simple words
- 5 side-by-side comparisons of AI vs. natural English, covering 80% of daily work communication
- A 5-step self-check checklist to remove the AI smell in 30 seconds
Ever had this experience? You spend five minutes crafting an email with DeepL or ChatGPT, read it back, think "sounds pretty smooth," send it off, and your foreign colleague replies—but something feels off. It's not a grammar mistake, just... weird.
If that rings a bell, you're not alone. Thousands of non-native English speakers face the same dilemma every day.
The problem isn't accuracy—AI translation is already impressively precise. The problem is that AI-written English is too correct, so correct it doesn't sound human.
Native speakers might not be able to pinpoint why it feels off—but they can feel it. That subtle discomfort is the "AI smell."
The good news? You can get rid of it. You don't need to become a native speaker—you just need to know where AI gives itself away.
5 Typical Robot Signs in AI English
After analyzing tons of AI-translated/generated English, I've boiled it down to five traits that most often betray you.
1. Overly formal, like a legal document
AI equates formality with professionalism. So you get "I am writing to inform you that the meeting has been rescheduled due to unforeseen circumstances." A native speaker? "Quick heads up—I moved the meeting. Something came up."
2. No contractions, like a textbook
AI almost never uses don't, I'll, we're, or it's. It writes "do not," "I will," "we are." When a native speaker sees an email with zero contractions, their first thought is "AI wrote this."
3. Passive voice overload
"It was decided that," "The proposal has been approved"—who decided? Who approved? AI won't say. A native speaker just says "We decided" or "I approved it."
4. Heavy templating
"Please do not hesitate to contact me," "Please find attached," "Per our conversation"—these appear in AI output at least 10 times more often than in human writing.
5. Afraid to keep it simple
AI thinks "help" is too basic, so it writes "facilitate"; "use" becomes "utilize"; "end" becomes "terminate." Native speakers do the exact opposite.
AI's training data is packed with press releases and legal documents—all formal texts. RLHF then favors outputs that "look professional." So AI conflates "formal" with "professional."
5 Scenarios: AI Version vs. Natural Version
Scenario 1: Email attachment
AI: "Please find attached the updated proposal for your review."
Natural: "I've attached the updated proposal—let me know what you think."
→ Drop "Please find attached," contract to "I've"
Scenario 2: Acknowledging receipt
AI: "We acknowledge receipt of your email dated March 15 and appreciate your prompt response."
Natural: "Thanks for your email on March 15—got it, appreciate the quick reply."
→ Drop "acknowledge receipt," add "got it"
Scenario 3: Requesting confirmation
AI: "We would appreciate it if you could kindly confirm your availability for the aforementioned meeting."
Natural: "Can you let me know if you're free for the meeting?"
→ Drop "would appreciate/kindly," switch to a direct question
Scenario 4: Notifying a reschedule
AI: "The meeting has been rescheduled to next Tuesday due to unforeseen circumstances."
Natural: "I moved the meeting to next Tuesday—something came up."
→ Passive to active, "due to circumstances" → "something came up"
Scenario 5: LinkedIn post
AI: "I am delighted to share that I have recently joined ABC Company as a Senior Manager."
Natural: "Excited to share I've joined ABC as a Senior Manager!"
→ "I am delighted" → "Excited," drop "that/recently," add an exclamation mark
These five scenarios cover 80% of daily English communication. Memorize these pairs, and every time you write an email, check against them—you'll cut the AI smell in half.
5-Step Self-Check Checklist: Make Your English Natural in 30 Seconds
Step 1: Search for contractions (5 seconds)
Search the whole text for "do not," "I will," "we are," "cannot," "it is." If there's not a single contraction, it's AI-written. Replace them all with don't, I'll, we're, can't, it's.
Step 2: Check the opening (5 seconds)
Does the first sentence start with "I am writing to inform you that..." or "This email is to..."? Delete it and get straight to the point.
Step 3: Hunt for passive voice (5 seconds)
Search for "has been," "was," "were." Every time you find one, ask "who did this action?" and add the subject.
Step 4: Scan for formal words (10 seconds)
Search for: per, upon, acknowledge, advise, kindly, regarding, facilitate, utilize, terminate. Replace each one with a everyday equivalent.
Step 5: Read it aloud (5 seconds)
Read it silently. If it feels like you're reading an official document—it's too formal. Natural English should sound like someone talking.
These five steps take under 30 seconds. After doing them 10 times, it becomes muscle memory. You'll never write "Please find attached" again.
Conclusion: Don't Let AI Speak for You—Let It Help You Speak
AI chases "correctness"; people chase "communication." An English email doesn't need perfect grammar—it needs to make the other person feel like you're talking to them.
You don't have to ditch AI. AI can handle 70% of the "how to write it"—vocabulary, grammar, structure. The remaining 30%—tone, culture, emotion—must come from you.
Remember:
Use AI for the first draft, use your judgment for the final review.
Delete every word that looks "too professional."
Read it once—does it sound like something you'd actually say? If not, change it.
Don't let AI speak for you. Let it help you speak. That's the biggest advantage non-native speakers have in the AI era.
