Telling clients you used AI

What it is good at

• Gives ready wording for the four situations that come up most often, rather than one generic template.
• Frames disclosure around outcome and quality rather than apologising for using a tool.
• Helps you decide when disclosure is actually necessary versus optional.
• Keeps the tone matter-of-fact, which reads as more professional than either hiding it or over-explaining it.

Where it falls short

• Some clients, industries or contracts require specific AI-disclosure wording; check your contract or sector rules before assuming a generic sentence is enough.
• This is about client communication, not a legal disclosure requirement, those are covered by your contract and, in regulated sectors, by law.
• Tone advice cannot tell you what a specific client will actually think; when in doubt, ask them what they expect.

How to use it for creative work

1. 01

   Check the contract or brief first

   Before drafting a message, check whether the contract, brief or platform rules already say something about AI use. If they do, your disclosure needs to match that requirement, not just sound polite.

2. 02

   Separate "used AI to speed up" from "AI made the decisions"

   Be precise about what AI actually did: drafted variations you chose between, generated a base image you then reworked, or wrote a first pass you edited heavily. Vague language like "AI helped" tells a client nothing useful.

3. 03

   Lead with the outcome

   Open with what the client is getting and whether it meets the brief, then mention the process. "This delivers what we agreed, and here is how I got there" reads very differently to opening with "I used AI for this."

4. 04

   Offer the option, not the excuse

   If a client might prefer a fully manual version, say so plainly and offer it, rather than either hiding your process or apologising for it. This puts the decision with them, which most clients respect.

5. 05

   Keep a standard line for pitches and portfolios

   Decide in advance one sentence you use consistently in proposals about how you use AI in your process, so it does not become an awkward improvised answer every time a new client asks.

Ready-to-use prompts

Write a short, professional client message explaining that [specific task, e.g. "three initial mood board directions"] was generated with AI assistance and then [what you did afterwards: selected, edited, refined]. Keep it factual and confident, not apologetic, in [tone: warm / formal / casual].

Write one sentence for a pitch deck or proposal describing, in general terms, how AI fits into my process for [type of work], written so it sounds like a competent professional using modern tools, not a disclaimer.

A client just asked me directly, 'did you use AI for this?' Write me a short, honest, confident spoken response for [specific project], including what I used it for and what I personally did.

Write a message offering a client the choice between the AI-assisted version I have delivered and a fully manual alternative at [different cost/timeline], without implying either option is lesser.

Read this clause from a client contract about AI-generated content and explain in plain English what it actually requires me to disclose or avoid: [paste clause].

Questions people ask

Do I legally have to tell clients I used AI?

It depends entirely on your contract, your industry and, increasingly, on local regulation in some sectors, check your specific agreement, and ask a solicitor if a contract's wording is unclear.

Will disclosing AI use make me look less skilled?

Framed around outcome and what you personally directed and finished, disclosure usually reads as competent process management rather than a weakness, vague or defensive framing is what tends to undermine confidence, not the disclosure itself.

What if a client explicitly said no AI and I used it anyway?

This is a contract and trust issue that a written apology alone will not fix, address it directly with the client and, if the contract was breached, take advice on your specific obligations rather than guessing.