Science shock! AI is making productivity harder and work worse • The Register

Bosses expect AI-powered software to boost productivity, but employees say the tool has the opposite effect, according to a study by job-search organization Upwork Research Institute, part of talent-search platform Upwork.

The survey elicited responses from 2,500 workers in the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada. Half of the respondents were CEOs, a quarter worked full-time, and the rest were freelancers. Respondents represented a wide range of ages and genders, but all had to have a high school diploma and at least “sometimes” use a computer at work.

Among other things, the results show that senior management is demanding more from employees, with 81 percent of the 1,250 executive respondents saying the same, according to the survey.

Bosses are urging employees to increase their productivity with AI tools (37 percent), expand their skill sets (35 percent), take on more responsibilities (30 percent), return to the office (27 percent), work more efficiently (26 percent) and work longer hours (20 percent).

The drive to reduce management productivity has left employees feeling unable to cope and burned out.

“Seventy-one percent are burnt out, and almost two-thirds (65 percent) report struggling to keep up with increasing demands from their employers,” the study found. “Worryingly, one in three workers say they are likely to leave their job in the next six months because they are burned out or overworked.”

Employees seem to share management’s optimism about AI, with 65 percent predicting that machine learning will make them more productive. But there is a gap between belief and reality.

Some 47 percent of workers using AI tools say they have no idea how to achieve the expected productivity gains. And more than three in four workers (77 percent) say AI tools have made them less productive while increasing their workload.

Thirty-nine percent of survey respondents said they are spending more time reviewing and moderating AI-generated content, 23 percent said they are spending time learning how to use AI tools, and 21 percent said they are being asked to do more work.

“Forty percent of employees believe that their company demands too much from them in terms of artificial intelligence,” reads the summary of the study conducted by the Institute.

The report places some of the blame on executives for overestimating employees’ readiness to adopt AI tools. While 37 percent of C-suite leaders at AI-enabled companies rated their employees as skilled and comfortable using AI tools, only 17 percent of employees shared that view.

Tellingly, while 96 percent of executives said AI tools improve productivity, only 26 percent have AI training programs in the workplace, and only 13 percent report a “well-implemented AI strategy.” In the boardroom, AI seems to encourage magical thinking.

Meanwhile, in the field, 38 percent of workers said they feel overwhelmed by the demands of using AI at work.

The Upwork report suggests that AI is not a simple way to improve productivity. Instead, organizations need to understand the technology and develop processes that help employees realize the benefits.

“Our research shows that injecting new technology into outdated work models and systems is not unlocking the full value of AI productivity,” Kelly Monahan, managing director of The Upwork Research Institute, said in a statement. “While AI can certainly increase productivity and improve employee well-being simultaneously, this outcome will require a fundamental shift in how talent and work are organized.”

Coincidentally, the Institute — part of the freelance hiring platform Upwork — suggests that hiring freelancers can help. “More freelancers say they’re ready for AI than full-time employees,” the report says.

And if freelancers burn out, there will always be new ones on the market. ®