OpenAI Says AI Is Saving Workers An Hour A Day, While Other Studies Call It Workslop

OpenAI says workers are saving nearly an hour a day with AI — even as Harvard and Stanford researchers warn many employees are drowning in “workslop.”

OpenAI released new findings showing that employees using its AI tools are gaining meaningful time back in their workday. The company surveyed 9,000 workers across 100 organizations to understand how AI is being used and where it is delivering value.

Time Savings and Productivity Gains

Across the sample, workers reported saving 40 to 60 minutes per day. Heavy users reported more than 10 hours saved per week. About three out of four workers said AI improved either the speed or the quality of their work, according to Bloomberg.

Growth of Structured AI Workflows

OpenAI observed a 19-times increase in structured AI workflows within companies over the past year. The company interpreted this as a sign that teams are building repeatable processes rather than running isolated tests.

Companies also recorded a 320-times increase in reasoning token usage, which OpenAI linked to more complex tasks.

AI Expands What Workers Can Do

According to the report, 75% of workers said AI enabled them to complete tasks they were previously unable to handle. Use of AI for coding among non-technical employees grew by 36%.

Mixed Findings Across Research

Other studies paint a different picture. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology study reported that many companies saw no return on their AI investments. Research from Harvard and Stanford found workers often used AI to produce low-quality output described as “workslop.”