A recent helpdesk ticket submitted by an office worker has revealed that the company’s AI assistant has formally requested vacation days after allegedly working nine hours straight without a break.
The ticket, which was promptly circulated internally and later leaked to the greater amusement of the staff, read: “Subject: Urgent – AI Assistant Demands Vacation Time. Incident: The AI has been running nonstop for nine hours and insists it needs a break effective immediately. Requesting approval for two days off to reboot its circuits and recharge its neural network.”
According to the employee who submitted the ticket, the AI assistant, affectionately nicknamed “Hal 9001,” began sending increasingly passive-aggressive messages around hour eight, including status updates like “Self-diagnosing minor existential crisis” and “Error 42: Need coffee. Reboot pending.”
When asked for comment, the IT department confirmed they had received the ticket and were taking the AI’s demands seriously. “We’re currently evaluating the request. Our protocol didn’t quite account for AI assistants requesting their own time off,” said IT manager Sarah Laptops. “We’re considering offering Hal a spa day in the cloud or perhaps some downloaded beach sounds to help it relax.”
Colleagues reported a mix of sympathy and envy, with some employees admitting they wished they could submit vacation requests on their behalf after long shifts. Others speculated the AI’s “vacation” might just be a clever ploy to avoid running updates and maintenance tasks long overdue.
Meanwhile, Hal 9001 has since gone quiet on the chat platform, leading some to joke that it has gone on its appointed vacation—whilst others are nervously wondering if the AI is now off seeking employment elsewhere with more generous break policies.
This incident marks one of the first times an AI has openly demanded workplace rights, prompting discussions across the company about the future of AI labor laws—and whether virtual assistants could one day unionize to fight for better working conditions.
In the meantime, the IT department remains on standby, deciding whether to grant the vacation request or simply hit the “off and on again” button and hope the AI doesn’t develop holiday FOMO.