It’s not just one thing – it’s something else

Sometimes things aren’t just one thing, they’re also something else. The syntax (“It’s not just this — it’s that”) has become so common in AI-generated writing that it is now not just a clue that a piece of writing might be artificial — it’s almost a guarantee.

For this reason, I wasn’t just intrigued when I saw Report on Barron On how this syntax has dramatically increased in corporate communications – I was very entertained. Not only did the report comment on the prevalence of this wording in corporate communications, it scanned market intelligence firm AlphaSense’s database to see how often this wording was used in corporate newsletters, earnings reports and government filings.

According to Baron, this syntax isn’t just an oddity in corporate communications — it’s an epidemic, having more than quadrupled from about 50 mentions in 2023, to more than 200 uses in 2025.

It’s not just the data that tells us this, I also found some examples from last year:

• “In 2025, AI will not just be a tool, it will be a collaborator.” (cisco)
• “The future of autonomy is not just on the horizon, it is already unfolding.” (Accenture)
• “DevOps teams not only manage deployments, but also manage security compliance and cloud spending.” (Work day)
• “These systems are not only performing tasks, but they are beginning to learn, adapt and cooperate.” (Mackenzie)
• “When Bill founded Microsoft, he didn’t envision just a software company, but a software manufacturer, not tied to any single product or category.” (Satya Nadella in A Microsoft blog post)
• “It’s not just about building tools for specific roles or tasks. It’s about building tools that enable everyone to build their own.” (Same as Microsoft blog post.)
• “Just imagine if all 8 billion people could call on a researcher…not only to get information but also use their expertise to get things done that benefit them.” (However, same Microsoft blog post.)

It’s no coincidence that generative AI tools use this phrase so often — it’s a reflection of our writing, on which these tools are trained (without our permission, might I add, and that’s not just an insult to the book — it’s a violation). And it’s not just this syntax, it’s also the overlapping dashes that now serve as a signal for the AI-generated text.

This isn’t just a funny trend — it’s a symbol of how much these companies rely on AI (although we can’t say for sure whether the above messages are powered by AI). So, next time you see a sentence like this, remember that it’s not just a catchy construction — it could be a sign of something greater.