Employees who used AI heavily logged an extra 18 minutes of after-hours work each day compared with non-users, raising questions about promises that the technology could help deliver a shorter workweek.
Here's what to know
ActivTrak, a workplace productivity software company, examined employee computer activity at 467 companies, covering more than 9,000 workers from April through September, Gizmodo reported.
The company classified employees as heavy users if they spent over 45 minutes using AI in five or more daily sessions. ActivTrak found that employees using AI averaged workday spans of 8.4 to 9.1 hours; non-users averaged 7.6 hours.
Beyond the longer hours, ActivTrak found that heavy users changed applications more often than employees who did not use AI, while their uninterrupted work periods were shorter than those of light users.
"AI may help employees complete tasks faster, but our research shows it contributes to longer workdays, more application switching and shorter focus sessions," Gabriela Mauch, chief customer officer and head of the ActivTrak Productivity Lab, said in a press release.
More background
According to Gizmodo, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business conducted an eight-month study of a 200-employee technology company. They found that AI intensified work rather than freeing up time.
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The researchers reported that employees increased their pace, took on a wider variety of assignments, and worked longer, frequently on their own initiative.
AI's growing use also has implications beyond the workplace, including for the energy grid. The computing infrastructure behind these tools requires electricity and water for cooling.
While AI could help optimize clean energy systems, its growing resource demands can put pressure on power supplies and household energy bills.
What's being done?
Sen. Bernie Sanders has called for a policy to help ensure workers benefit: a 32-hour workweek without reduced compensation. A shorter workweek is also among the potential long-term benefits of AI, according to proponents Bill Gates and Jensen Huang, according to Gizmodo.
"At a time when artificial intelligence and robotics will radically transform our economy, it is imperative that the financial gains from this new technology benefit working families, not just a handful of billionaires and corporate CEOs. One important way to do that is through a 32-hour workweek with no loss in pay or benefits," Sanders said.
In an interview with the business school, Berkeley study author Xingqi Maggie Ye explained that as employees take on more responsibilities and run multiple AI-assisted workflows, extra effort that was initially voluntary can become the expected standard.
"We're in an extremely productivity-driven economy, where if we get some, we want more," Mauch told Bloomberg.
Where can I learn more?
Workers' concerns about AI on the job go beyond longer workdays. These stories cover scheduling problems, added paperwork, and AI-driven workplace surveillance.
• A Walmart worker says AI-driven scheduling changes mean "clopening" shifts and fewer consecutive days off.
• UK medical practice managers say lengthy AI-generated complaints take time away from patient care.
• U.S. workers say AI tracks their tone and trains bots to replace them.
• A New Jersey worker says AI photographed her at home before she was fired.
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