The ChatGPT EM Dash (-)

Advocate for AI

Just to be clear, I’m a huge AI advocate. However I don’t enjoy the new way of communicating to each other through ChatGPT. It seems every email I’ve received, tweet I look at or even LinkedIn post I scroll past is 100% AI. Hopefully this article educates you on how obvious it is you are using AI.

The ChatGPT EM Dash of Doom

So you now know about the obvious ‘Em Dash’. I’ll be honest, I didn’t even know it existed until I saw PrettyLittleThing got roasted for their rebrand copy including the em dash.

Are Em Dashes Really That Weird?

To be fair, em dashes aren’t wrong or inappropriate. In fact, writers, editors, and plenty of detail-conscious communicators use them intentionally. In Microsoft Word or iOS, two hyphens auto-convert into an em dash. Some people even go so far as to memorise the shortcut. So yes – they’re out there in the wild. But let’s be honest: how many people are using them in casual emails to colleagues about project updates or Slack follow-ups?

AI’s signature Style

The theory isn’t far-fetched. Tools like ChatGPT, Grammarly, and Outlook’s predictive AI often use em dashes by default. It’s a stylistic choice that lends a sense of sophistication and rhythm to writing, but also one that doesn’t mirror most people’s natural email tone.

It’s not just the em dash either. These emails feel like they’ve been through a digital polish: minimal filler words, perfectly aligned thoughts, and zero typos. Every message feels like a LinkedIn post about to go viral. And when that tone shows up in a message confirming a Zoom meeting time, it sticks out.

Authenticity Matters.

In simple words, let’s ensure we are our true selves. I actually get excited when I receive an email with a typo or a genuine personal quirk as I know the person has made the genuine effort to write it.

If we all just create AI Slop – will we lose our creativity?