"I've spent a lot of time recently thinking about the promise of AI-fueled productivity in the workplace, especially after that MIT report found that the majority of companies' AI pilots weren't living up to that promise. In the past year, the number of companies running entire workflows with AI has almost doubled, while overall workplace use has also doubled since 2023. Despite the dramatic uptake of the tech, a recent MIT Media Lab study still found that 95% of the organizations embracing AI weren't seeing a clear return on those investments."
"But, as Jeremy pointed out at the time, the report actually put the blame for the lack of productivity gains on a "learning gap"-people and organizations not understanding how to use the AI tools properly-rather than an issue with the performance of the technology itself. New research suggests an alternative explanation: that the presence of AI in the workplace may actually be dragging down productivity. According to a recent and ongoing survey from BetterUp Labs in collaboration with Stanford University's Social Media Lab, some employees are using AI to create low-effort "workslop," which is time-consuming to clean up."
AI adoption has surged, with companies doubling AI workflows and workplace use since 2023. A recent MIT Media Lab study found 95% of organizations embracing AI weren't seeing a clear return on investments. Some observers cite a learning gap—people and organizations not understanding how to use AI tools properly—as a reason for weak gains. New research from BetterUp Labs and Stanford's Social Media Lab identifies "workslop": AI-generated low-effort content that masquerades as good work but lacks substance, dragging down productivity and creating time-consuming cleanup. Reports indicate workslop may also fuel a niche cleanup economy, adding hidden costs to AI use.
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