AI in the workplace is expanding responsibilities and intensifying work

The integration of AI in the workplace is reshaping job responsibilities and intensifying workloads, rather than simplifying them. A recent eight-month study conducted by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business observed this phenomenon within a tech company employing around 200 individuals. The findings revealed that the advent of generative AI led to increased multitasking, an expansion of job roles, and longer working hours—often without any formal requests for additional output. Aruna Ranganathan, a management professor at UC Berkeley, and Ph.D. candidate Xingqi Maggie Ye elaborated on their research in a Harvard Business Review article. They noted that as AI tools became accessible, employees began to encroach on one another’s responsibilities, share insights with AI during meetings, and provide feedback on each other’s projects. "Workers described this as 'just trying things' with the AI, but these trials cumulatively widened the scope of their jobs," Ranganathan and Ye observed. They pointed out that employees increasingly took on tasks that would have previously warranted extra support or personnel. Additionally, many workers reportedly send AI prompts before stepping away from their desks for meetings or breaks, allowing AI to function autonomously. "These actions rarely felt like doing more work, yet over time they resulted in a workday characterized by fewer breaks and a deeper engagement with tasks," Ranganathan and Ye noted. In a separate conversation in October 2025, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman discussed how AI has heightened his own work intensity. "It's almost like I don't think I can generate ideas quickly enough anymore," he remarked during an interview with Rowan Cheung of the Rowan's Notes series. Altman expressed uncertainty about the long-term implications of AI in the workplace, suggesting that it would lead to a faster pace of work and a greater capacity for experimentation in pursuit of innovative ideas.