• Gen Z jobseekers are rewriting job applications to pass AI detection
• Applying for a new job is increasingly difficult, as applicants navigate AI screening while trying to sound human and "hireable"
• AI can streamline the applications process, but it is also increasingly trivializing it

AI is becoming increasingly prominent in both job applications and hiring, with a new survey highlighting how Gen Z applicants are handling the challenge of appearing both human and attractive to an AI screening system.

Research by hiring platform Greenhouse of over 1,100 job seekers in the UK and Ireland has found that younger applicants are more aware of the challenges of AI job screening than those over 60.

The survey, which appears in the 2026 Greenhouse Future of Hiring Report, also reveals that 81% of applicants are rejected without speaking to anyone at the company they’re applying for. Could it be time for the whole hiring market to change, and offer applicants a new way to demonstrate who they are and what they can bring to a potential employer?

Interviewed by computer

The challenge with finding a job in 2026 is getting your application in front of a human. Doing so means it has to be impressive enough to be flagged by an AI system, typically an agent configured to evaluate CVs and applications and highlight the strongest candidates.

Greenhouse’s research found that 97% of job seekers wish they could showcase something that cannot be included in their application, which may point to a new way of doing things.

But it is the challenge of passing AI screening – whether by a written application or through an AI interview – that is most concerning. 42% of candidates have sat through an AI interview in the past 12 months, with 57% stating that it let them demonstrate their skills.

AI is changing the game

As anyone who has applied for a job in the past couple of years knows, AI plays a huge part in polishing a CV. But employers are finding that there is little to choose between applicants as the souped up resumes lack individuality.

“For the first time I can remember, neither side thinks hiring is working," noted Sharawn Tipton, Chief People Officer at Greenhouse.

"Candidates send applications into a black hole, while employers sift through AI-polished CVs that all look the same.”

The situation now is that applying for a job needs more than just a piece of paper to say what you’re done.

As Tipton adds: “The application used to be a front door. Now, too often, it’s a dead end. Candidates need a system that actually works and gives them a fair shot. Bolting bad AI on top only hurts them and employers.”

It seems a large problem to solve, but Greenhouse's Ophir Samson has a suggestion: "Trust must be built into the process from the start." Samson implies that applicants need to understand how they are being screened before they send their CV.