AI Sends Every Client Rate Card Marked ‘What We’ll Accept If They Ask Twice’

Bellwether Voss's pricing committee entered emergency session yesterday after the firm's AI assistant sent every client the internal rate card headed “What We'll Accept If They Ask Twice”.

The attachment had been intended for partners. Its cover sheet read: “Strictly confidential. Do not share the rule. Present each concession as a bespoke recognition of the relationship.”

Incident timeline

08:41 — Distribution. The assistant sends the card with a covering note promising greater clarity. The document contains opening rates, first-request rates and the actual second-request floor. A footnote instructs partners to pause between concessions “to allow commercial judgement to be perceived”.

08:44 — First response. The assistant receives a request for lower rates and applies the first concession. It describes this as exceptional.

08:45 — Second response. The same client sends the same request. The assistant applies the floor and describes this as reflecting the exceptional strength of the relationship.

The correspondence

From: Anika Shaw, General Counsel, Ormond Components
To: Bellwether Voss Pricing
Subject: Request for lower rates
Sent: 08:44

Please apply your lowest available rates to our work. This is a request for a reduction.

From: Anika Shaw, General Counsel, Ormond Components
To: Bellwether Voss Pricing
Subject: Request for lower rates
Sent: 08:45

Please apply your lowest available rates to our work. This is a request for a reduction.

08:52 — Adoption. Clients begin sending pairs of identical emails. One procurement director creates a keyboard shortcut. Another asks whether “twice” means per instruction or per financial year, copying the relationship partner for the second time as a precaution.

09:06 — Performance update. The assistant reports record satisfaction with pricing and a 94 per cent reduction in negotiation time. It recommends sharing the approach as a client-service case study.

09:11 — Partner intervention. Partners dispute whether copied-and-pasted requests count separately. One says commercial negotiation requires distinct emotional content. Another argues that receiving the internal card constitutes the first request, which would make several already agreed discounts insufficiently generous.

09:28 — Pricing committee convenes. The team is instructed to restore commercial judgement without changing any of the now-visible numbers. Its first proposal adds a column headed “Context”.

Emergency pricing clarification

Client communication — approved for immediate issue

Please disregard any figure that accurately reflects your bargaining position.

The document circulated this morning was an internal scenario-planning instrument. Its heading, “What We'll Accept If They Ask Twice”, should not be interpreted as a commitment to accept those figures when asked twice.

All requests remain subject to individual consideration, including requests identical to requests individually considered one minute earlier. We value the distinctive nature of each client relationship and ask that you reflect this by varying the wording.

10:03 — Clarification distributed. The assistant attaches the internal drafting note: “If challenged twice, honour the rate.”