Work less thanks to AI? Many tech companies advertise this, but in reality, it seems different. A study points out that the use of AI may not mean less work, but ultimately more: Artificial intelligence often does not just mean less working hours, but a densification and change of tasks.
Artificial intelligence is now used in many areas. The most important argument for the use of AI is the often-mentioned time savings. The artificial intelligence takes over a complex task and one can focus on other things.
Mainly tech companies advertise the potentially significant time savings of AI:
- Anthropic has advertised that its popular programming tool and chatbot Claude is supposed to work independently for seven hours straight without a break.
- Mark Zuckerberg from Meta stated (via Inc.com) that AI tools would enable far fewer employees to achieve more than ever before.
- And OpenAI stated (via BBC.com) that one could introduce the 4-day week because artificial intelligence would speed up work.
A 4-day week thanks to artificial intelligence? Sounds great at first and would probably be the dream of many young people who want to move away from a 5-day week.
However, former tech employees report to the BBC that AI usually means significantly more work: 40-hour weeks quickly become 70 or even 90 hours. Especially during times when projects need to be completed. So-called “sprints”, better known in the gaming industry as “crunch time”.
AI does not mean less work, but a densification of the existing tasks
Does artificial intelligence really mean less work? In fact, there are now research reports indicating that AI tools may even increase people’s workload. And there are various reasons for this, as shown by a study from the University of California: AI does not make work less, but simply intensifies it:
- People who work quickly and are supported by AI take on even more tasks that then require more time. There can be no talk of a time gain.
- Additionally, problems caused by AI are often reported. Errors must either be corrected manually or adjusted otherwise, which would again consume working hours.
- Another point: Many employees fill the time saved by AI with new work because they think they must prove their value to the employer.
Neil Thompson, innovation researcher at MIT, stated to the BBC that it is a misconception that the use of artificial intelligence means less work. Instead, new work will arise that will replace the old:
People assume that 20% less work means a four-day week. But new work is created.
Artificial intelligence thus often does not simply mean less working hours, but a densification and change of tasks. Thus, the overall burden on the individual also increases. By the way, the CEO of Nvidia already recognized this. For Jensen Huang explained that AI will give people significantly more work instead of rendering their work superfluous.
In general, the assumption remains that the biggest challenge posed by AI is not necessarily just job loss, but also the change in work life. Processes become tighter, demands increase. More dramatic than Huang describes it, however, is Dario Amodei, the CEO of the AI company behind Claude: AI destroys jobs and companies downplay the threat
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