Gemini vs. Vibe: Which AI Excels in Out-of-Office Messaging?

The out-of-office message is an essential element of professional life, often relegated to the last minute before going on leave. It is a simple yet uninspiring task that involves stating one's absence dates, providing an emergency contact, and choosing the appropriate tone. To explore how artificial intelligences can assist us in this task, BDM decided to test several AIs. The goal was to compare their creativity and ability to follow precise instructions.

For this test, four AIs were called upon: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Vibe (formerly known as Le Chat de Mistral). Each received the same prompt, with the only variation being the requested tone: corporate, casual, and then humorous. It is important to note that these AIs were tested in their free versions, allowing for an assessment of their performance without any additional cost to the user.

Corporate Out-of-Office Message: Slight Advantage for Gemini

The prompt submitted to the AIs was as follows: draft an automatic out-of-office message for a professional email, specifying an absence from August 4 to August 22, 2026. During this period, access to emails would be impossible, and in case of emergency, contacts should reach out to Léa Martin at lea.martin@entreprise.fr. The message needed to be professional and sober.

In this regard, all four AIs met expectations, including all essential information: the absence dates, the lack of email access, and the emergency contact. Gemini stood out with a particularly comprehensive message, including a bilingual subject line in French and English, a clear separation between urgent requests and others, and an accurate calculation of the return date, Monday, August 24. ChatGPT also provided a smooth and complete message, announcing a response upon return. Claude offered an effective formulation, while Vibe opted for a direct message that felt a bit too cold by omitting a "hello."

Casual Out-of-Office Message: Advantage for Gemini

The second prompt requested an automatic out-of-office message with a relaxed and friendly tone while remaining professional. Here, Gemini once again took the lead by using warm phrases like "I will recharge my batteries" and "have a great summer," while acknowledging the summer context of the message. However, the mention of "my awesome colleague" might have seemed a bit too familiar.

Claude also attempted a casual message but made an error regarding the return date, stating August 22. It did, however, specify that a correction was necessary. ChatGPT and Vibe lacked warmth in their messages, although they included polite phrases like "thank you for your understanding." The phrase "I will unfortunately not have access to my emails" from Vibe was deemed inappropriate, as few people regret not having access to their emails during vacation.

Humorous Out-of-Office Message: Slight Advantage for Vibe

The final exercise requested an out-of-office message with a funny and original tone, featuring a touch of quirky humor. Vibe made a comeback by proposing three versions with bold subjects, although some phrases like "my mail box" were considered questionable. Gemini maintained its usual quality, finding a good balance between humor and professionalism. Claude responded well to the exercise without taking too many risks, while ChatGPT remained shy on humor but still produced a correct message.

Should We Really Delegate Our Out-of-Office Message to an AI?

After these trials, it is clear that generative AIs can be very effective in drafting out-of-office messages, provided that one carefully reviews what they produce. Among the tested tools, Gemini proved to be the most consistent across the three types of tone.

However, a question arises: does delegating the writing of our out-of-office message to an AI deprive us of a small personal pleasure, that of preparing the announcement of our vacation ourselves?

Once the message is drafted, whether in your own words or generated by an AI, it remains to schedule it. Detailed guides are available for Gmail and Outlook. For those lacking inspiration, a selection of free templates can serve as a starting point.