How to Write Viral LinkedIn Hooks Using AI

The hook—the first 1-3 lines of your post—determines 80% of your success. If the hook fails, the content dies. In 2026, AI is the ultimate tool for engineering viral hooks, but only if you know how to prompt it correctly.

The Psychology of a Viral Hook

Viral hooks trigger specific psychological responses:

• Curiosity: "I found a secret..."
• Fear of Missing Out (FOMO): "Stop doing X if you want Y..."
• Contrarianism: "Everyone is wrong about..."
• Specific Benefit: "How to get 10k followers in 30 days..."

Prompting AI for Hooks

Don't just ask ChatGPT, "Write a hook for this post." You will get generic garbage. Be specific.

Prompt 1: The Variation Generator

"Here is my post draft: [Paste Post]. Write 10 different hooks for this post. Make 3 of them contrarian, 3 of them data-driven, and 4 of them story-based. Keep them under 20 words."

Prompt 2: The Style Mimic

"Analyze the writing style of Justin Welsh and Alex Hormozi. Write a hook for my post in the style of each of them."

Prompt 3: The Pattern Interrupt

"Give me a hook that starts with a negative statement but flips to a positive lesson."

The "Scroll-Stopper" Checklist

Before you publish, run your AI-generated hook through this checklist:

1.   Is it under 3 lines? (Mobile optimization)

2.   Does it cut off at a cliffhanger before the "See more" button?

3.   Does it promise a specific payoff?

4.   Is it easy to read (grade 4 level)?

Examples of AI-Optimized Hooks

• Before: "I want to talk about leadership today." (Boring)
• After AI: "Most leaders fail because they are too nice. Here is why kindness is killing your team's performance." (Viral)

Conclusion

Use AI to generate volume, then use your human intuition to pick the winner. Test different hooks for the same topic and see what your audience craves.