AI-generated text causes surge in government service filings

A new study has identified a phenomenon termed “agentic flooding,” where the availability of cheap AI-generated text has led to a surge in both the volume and complexity of filings submitted to government services. Researchers documented 84 cases across 11 jurisdictions, noting that 87% of these surges are linked to the capability of large language models to produce text at scale.

Specific examples include the UK housing ombudsman, where complaints rose from 2,600 in 2022 to over 7,000 in 2025, and the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which saw a fivefold increase in complaints during the same period. Similar increases in petitions were observed in Brazil and Germany.

The study distinguishes between quantitative flooding, involving a higher number of requests, and qualitative flooding, where individual filings become significantly longer and more complex. In one instance in a German social court, a single filing exceeded 4,000 pages. The researchers noted that while many agencies use submission caps to prevent flooding, these measures are often ineffective against single, massive documents generated by AI.