How to Ask a Coworker to Shorten an AI-Written Message

A colleague answers your question with 600 words, three headings, and a bulleted summary of what they just said. Somewhere in the fourth paragraph is the answer. You now have to dig it out, and you also have to decide whether to say anything.

Most people say nothing, skim, and quietly trust that colleague a little less. That is the worst outcome for both sides. The sender never learns the message cost you time, and the next one arrives at the same length.

This post is about the receiving end. If you want the sender’s side, see how to write shorter emails and Slack messages. Here the job is to get a usable version from someone else without making it about their tools.

Why This Is A Real Problem And Not A Pet Peeve

Length is the most common complaint about AI-assisted writing at work. A survey of 289 Australian professionals, reported in April 2026, found that respondents named overly long prose and summaries that miss key information among their common problems, and that only about one in five had completed training on using generative AI well. It is a small survey run by a company that sells writing training, so treat the percentages as indicative rather than definitive. The direction is hard to argue with: people are using the tools faster than they are learning to edit the output. You can read the coverage at IT Brief Australia.

Some employers have started writing rules about it. As of September 2026, Business Insider reported that companies including Polarsteps, Leapsome and Clay have introduced internal AI-writing policies that stress clarity, sensible length, and owning every sentence. The effects of those policies have not been independently verified. If your workplace has no such rule, you are the one setting the norm, one reply at a time.

For the reputation side of the same problem, see the workslop epidemic.

Ask For The Format, Not An Apology

The mistake is to ask “did you use AI?” That turns a length problem into an accusation, and the answer does not help you either way. A long message written by hand is just as expensive to read.

Ask for the thing you need instead.

Before:

This is way too long. Can you just give me the actual answer instead of whatever this is?

After:

Thanks for the detail. To keep this quick on my side, could you send the answer in two or three sentences, with anything else as a separate note I can read later?

The second version names a length, keeps the door open for the detail, and says nothing about how the message was produced. It also gives the sender an easy way to comply, which matters more than being right.

Tell Them What You Need To Decide

Short is not a goal on its own. Often the long reply exists because the sender did not know what you were going to do with it. Telling them removes most of the padding.

Before:

Can you shorten this?

After:

I need to decide today whether we ship Friday or Monday. Which one, and what is the one risk I should know about?

Now there are two things to answer, and a long reply would be strange. This is the same principle behind putting the bottom line up front, applied to your request instead of their answer.

Set The Format Once, Then Reuse It

If one colleague or one channel keeps producing walls of text, ask once for the standing format, not a rewrite every time.

Before:

Please stop sending me such long updates.

After:

For these weekly updates, could you use this shape: one line on status, one line on any blocker, one line on what you need from me. If there is more, link it below.

A template is easier to follow than a complaint, and it works whether the person writes by hand or drafts with a tool. For the broader problem of asking someone to redo work, see how to ask a coworker to redo work without friction.

Check Your Own Request Before Sending

Requests like these are easy to get wrong in tone. A message that sounds mildly irritated in your head can read as contempt on screen. If you are unsure, draft the plain version first and then soften it.

A Wrivio Context for asking a colleague to shorten a message could say:

Rewrite this as a brief, friendly request to a coworker for a shorter version of their message. Name the format wanted (a number of sentences, or a specific question to answer). Do not comment on how the original was written or on whether AI was used. Keep every name, date, figure, and commitment exactly as written. Do not add apologies or praise that were not in the draft.

Press Ctrl+Shift+Space, paste the draft, and check the diff. What to watch for: the rewrite should not invent a deadline you never mentioned or soften your request into a vague hint.

What To Do When It Keeps Happening

If a polite request does not change anything after two or three tries, stop treating it as a message problem. It may be a norm problem for the whole team, and that belongs in a team agreement rather than a private nudge. A small AI use policy for a team can include one line on length and ownership, which is often enough.

Common Questions

Is it rude to ask a coworker to shorten a message?

No, as long as you ask for a specific format and do not criticize the person. Requests like “two or three sentences, details separately” are ordinary and most people are relieved to get clear instructions.

Should I ask whether they used AI to write it?

Usually not. The question rarely helps you get a shorter message, and it can sound accusatory. Ask for the length and structure you need; that works whether the text was typed, dictated, or generated.

What if the long message contains something important I might miss?

Ask for the key point first and the detail second, rather than discarding the detail. A reply like “answer first, then anything I need to know” keeps the substance and puts the decision where you can see it.

What if the person is my manager or a client?

Keep the same shape but frame it as helping you act faster, for example “so I can turn this around today, could you give me the top two points?” Avoid any hint that their writing is the problem.

Download Wrivio for Windows to draft requests like these in a neutral tone without leaving the app you are working in.