Story
When the AI changes something I wrote, I want each change held as a draft that I can accept or reject, so nothing goes out that I did not see.
Priya, a primary school teacher in Pune, fixing the sports day newsletter on her tablet before it goes to parents.
- 01 Setting
Priya asks the AI to fix the grammar in her newsletter.
- 02 Trigger
The AI finds 3 things to change. 1 of them changes the date by mistake.
- 03 Without it
The 3 changes go straight into the text. The wrong date goes out to 28 parents.
- 04 With it
Each change is marked and waits. She rejects the date change.
- 05 Outcome
2 changes accepted, 1 rejected. The newsletter has the right day.
Live demo
This demo follows a script, so it plays the same every time - there is no real AI behind it. Change a setting to see the same moment play out differently.
What happens, step by step
| State | The person sees | The AI is | When | Screen reader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The ask, and the text as it is. | Starts. | 0 s | - |
| 2 | "Suggesting changes" with dots. The text does not move. | Works. | - | “Suggesting changes” |
| 3 | Each change marked in place - old text crossed out, new text underlined - and "3 to review · nothing is changed yet". | Waits. | when ready | “Draft ready. 3 changes to review” |
| 4 | The change becomes plain text. The review moves to the next change. | Idle. | on tap | - |
| 5 | The old text comes back. A line records what was rejected. | Idle. | on tap | - |
| 6 | The draft is gone. A past-tense line: "2 accepted · 1 rejected". | Idle. | after the last change | “Changes applied” |
On each device
- phone
- Changes are marked in the text. A review card at the bottom shows 1 change at a time, with Reject and Accept by the thumb.
- tablet
- As on the phone, or as on desktop when the keyboard is attached.
- desktop
- Changes are marked in the text, and each has its own Accept and Reject on hover and focus. Accept all and Reject all sit at the top of the draft.
When to use it
- The AI edits something a person wrote, and the person is responsible for it.
- 1 wrong change can do harm - a date, a number, a name, a line of code.
- The AI makes several changes at once, and people need to keep some and drop others.
- The AI writes something new from nothing - there is nothing to compare with. Use Side pane and artifacts instead.
- The change is small, safe and easy to undo, like a tone tweak on a chat answer. Use Adjust length and tone instead.
- People need to go back to an older whole version, not judge single changes. Use Version history and checkpoints instead.
The parts of the pattern
- ADraft statusSays it is a draft, how many changes are left, and that "nothing is changed yet".
- BMarked changeOld text crossed out, new text underlined, in place. The change under review has a ring.
- CReject and Accept1 decision per change. Reject is as easy to reach as Accept.
- DAccept allA quiet shortcut for when every change is fine. Not the main button.
Do and Avoid
Sports day is on Friday 14 15 March.
Change 2 of 3 · Reject · Accept
Sports day is on Friday 15 March.
Draft ready · Discard · Accept all
“14 March” to “15 March”
RejectAccept
“14 March” to “15 March”
Accept all 3or undo everything
Writing and accessibility
- Say it is a draft and that nothing has changed yet: "Draft · 3 to review · nothing is changed yet".
- Name each change in a few words: "14 March to 15 March", not "Edit 2".
- Use the plain verbs Accept and Reject. Keep "Accept all" smaller than the per-change buttons.
- Record the result in the past tense: "2 accepted · 1 rejected".
- Do not rely on colour or strike-through alone. Give each change a text name, like "Suggested: 15, was 14".
- Accept and Reject are real buttons, at least 44 px, named with the change they act on.
- Announce "Draft ready. 3 changes to review" when the draft appears, and the count as it goes down.
- After a decision, move focus to the next change, not back to the top of the page.
Seen in real products
- GitHub Copilot in VS CodeDesktop editor · Nov 2026Agent edits wait as pending changes. People choose Keep or Undo for each change, each file, or all at once. The docs say pending edits are already saved to disk, so tests run on them.VS Code docs: Review AI-generated code edits ↗
- ChatGPT canvasWeb, Windows and macOS · Nov 2026Suggest edits adds comment bubbles to the text. People can make the change themselves, or select Apply to have ChatGPT do it.OpenAI Help: Canvas ↗
Each example comes from the product’s help pages, release notes or teardowns, with the month it was checked. Products change every month - tell us when 1 is out of date.
Check yourself
Seen this pattern done better, or a product that changed? Press Suggest next to any heading, or tell us about the whole page.