AI-Generated “Workslop” Is Destroying Productivity
"Employees are using AI tools to create low-effort, passable looking work that ends up creating more work for their coworkers:
We define workslop as AI generated work content that masquerades as good work, but lacks the substance to meaningfully advance a given task. [...]
Each incidence of workslop carries real costs for companies. Employees reported spending an average of one hour and 56 minutes dealing with each instance of workslop. Based on participants’ estimates of time spent, as well as on their self-reported salary, we find that these workslop incidents carry an invisible tax of $186 per month. For an organization of 10,000 workers, given the estimated prevalence of workslop (41%), this yields over $9 million per year in lost productivity.
Respondents also reported social and emotional costs of workslop, including the problem of navigating how to diplomatically respond to receiving it, particularly in hierarchical relationships. When we asked participants in our study how it feels to receive workslop, 53% report being annoyed, 38% confused, and 22% offended.
The most alarming cost may be interpersonal. Low effort, unhelpful AI generated work is having a significant impact on collaboration at work. Approximately half of the people we surveyed viewed colleagues who sent workslop as less creative, capable, and reliable than they did before receiving the output. Forty-two percent saw them as less trustworthy, and 37% saw that colleague as less intelligent.
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