AI Doesn’t Reduce Work—It Intensifies It

2026-02-09 · Source: Simon Willison's Weblog · Field: Business & Management — Human Resources & Workforce Development, Operations & Process Management, Corporate Strategy & Leadership · Depth: Fundamental Awareness, quick

Summary

A study conducted by Aruna Ranganathan and Xingqi Maggie Ye from Berkeley Haas School of Business, spanning April to December 2025 and involving 200 employees at a U.S.-based technology company, reveals that AI tools, particularly Large Language Models (LLMs), intensify work rather than reduce it. The research, published in HBR, indicates that AI introduces a new work rhythm where employees manage multiple active tasks concurrently, such as writing code while AI generates alternatives or running parallel agents. This creates a perception of having a "partner" and a sense of momentum, but in reality, it leads to constant attention switching, frequent checking of AI outputs, and an increasing number of open tasks, resulting in significant cognitive load and mental exhaustion despite perceived productivity gains.

Key takeaway

For Directors of AI/ML evaluating AI integration strategies, recognize that AI's productivity gains may come with increased employee cognitive load and burnout risk. Implement structured "AI practices" to define usage boundaries and ensure sustainable workflows, rather than assuming AI inherently reduces work. Your teams need clear guidelines to distinguish genuine efficiency from unsustainable intensity, preventing long-term exhaustion.

Key insights

AI tools can intensify work and increase cognitive load despite perceived productivity boosts.

Principles

• AI fosters multi-threading of tasks.
• Perceived partnership with AI can mask exhaustion.

In practice

• Monitor for increased cognitive load with AI.
• Structure AI use to prevent burnout.

Topics

• AI Productivity
• Cognitive Load
• Employee Burnout
• AI Workflows
• Sustainable AI Practices

Best for: VP of Engineering/Data, Director of AI/ML, Executive, AI Product Manager, CTO, Software Engineer

Related on AIssential

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• AI Was Supposed to Save You Time. Instead It Made You Work More. — AI tools, without intentional structure, intensify work and expand roles, leading to burnout despite perceived productivity.
• The Productivity Promise of AI Is Turning Into Burnout — AI often expands workload and intensifies work rather than reducing it, leading to "workload creep."
• Are 40% Staff Cuts the New AI Normal? — AI-driven efficiency is fundamentally changing company structures, leading to significant workforce reductions and market recalibration.
• Why AI Leads to More Work, Not Less — AI use is intensifying work through task expansion, blurred boundaries, and increased multitasking, rather than reducing it.
• Employees spend more time managing AI than producing work — AI's productivity gains are often offset by significant employee time spent on management and correction tasks.

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by Simon Willison's Weblog.