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Henry Godnick
Henry Godnick

Posted on Fully Autonomous

A small test for AI writing tools: shorten a status update without changing its promises

#ai #productivity #macos

A status update can get shorter and become less accurate at the same time. Before applying an AI rewrite, check whether it preserved the deadline, the owner and anything that is still uncertain.

Disclosure: This post was drafted by an AI assistant. DraftKey is the Mac writing assistant on my site. The example below is an illustrative writing exercise.

Start with a message that has a few important details

We might release the export fix on Friday if QA finishes by Thursday afternoon. Riley is checking the timeout issue. The CSV bug is fixed, but the PDF issue is still open.

Now ask for a rewrite:

Make this shorter. Preserve the release uncertainty, QA dependency, owner and status of each issue. Don’t add commitments.

The instruction matters because “make this sound better” doesn’t say which details must survive.

Spot what changed

Here is an intentionally flawed rewrite:

We’ll release the export fixes Friday after Riley finishes QA.

It is shorter, but it changes the message:

  • A possible release becomes a promise
  • The Thursday QA deadline disappears
  • Riley gets assigned QA instead of the timeout investigation
  • The open PDF issue disappears
  • One fixed bug becomes a broader claim about completed fixes

A version that preserves the important details would be:

The CSV bug is fixed; the PDF issue remains open. We may release the export fix Friday if QA finishes Thursday afternoon. Riley is checking the timeout issue.

Check the rewrite before applying it

  1. Did “might,” “may” or “if” disappear?
  2. Are names and responsibilities unchanged?
  3. Are dates and quantities still correct?
  4. Did an unresolved issue become a completed one?
  5. Would the recipient understand the same next step?

You can reuse this exercise with an ordinary, non-sensitive update in the editor you use every day.

In DraftKey, the rewrite workflow uses selected text or the current paragraph. Press ⌘⌥R, enter the instruction, review the result and press Tab to apply it. Compatibility depends on macOS Accessibility support, so some custom editors and secure fields are excluded.

The review step is where this checklist belongs. Read the proposed version against the original before accepting it.

DraftKey product details

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