Employers are grappling with an unprecedented surge of job applications generated by artificial-intelligence tools that can craft and submit résumés in seconds. LinkedIn says it now processes roughly 11,000 applications a minute—an increase of 45% from a year earlier—after candidates began relying on products such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and fully autonomous job-search agents. To cope, companies are automating the other side of the pipeline. Chipotle Mexican Grill reports that its ‘Ava Cado’ screening chatbot has reduced time-to-hire by 75%, and a growing number of firms conduct first-round video or chat interviews entirely with algorithms that rank and shortlist applicants before any human review. Recent surveys suggest the technology is moving well beyond recruitment. A June poll by Resume Builder of 1,342 U.S. managers found 77% rely on AI when deciding pay raises, 66% when choosing whom to lay off and 64% when terminating staff. A separate TechRepublic study put overall managerial use of AI at 65%, with 94% turning to the software for promotion and firing decisions; roughly two in five managers said they sometimes let AI act without human oversight. Regulators are struggling to keep pace. The European Union’s new Artificial Intelligence Act classifies hiring tools as “high-risk,” requiring additional documentation and human oversight, while the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has warned that employers could face liability if automated systems discriminate. Advocacy groups say clearer accountability rules are needed as AI quietly reshapes who gets hired, promoted or dismissed.