AI Doubles 2026 Job Applicants, Eroding Cover Letters' Value
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Oct 14
AI Doubles 2026 Job Applicants, Eroding Cover Letters' Value
3 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Oct 14
Summary
Twice as many applicants are chasing each 2026 opening as comparable roles in 2022, LinkedIn Research found, pushing recruiters to spend less time on cover letters and often ignore them altogether.
AI is driving both trends: it makes polished cover letters easy to generate, weakening them as proof of effort or fit, while also making it faster for candidates to apply at scale.
Some employers now use AI to prescreen applications, creating a loop in which bots assess cover letters written by bots and making generic submissions even less useful.
Human-sounding, tailored letters can still help with some managers, but experts say their value now varies sharply by company and recruiter rather than serving as a universal requirement.
As AI further lowers the cost of applying, employers are expected to lean more on harder-to-fake signals such as trusted recommendations and in-person networking.