Original: Simon Willison · 09/02/2026
Summary
AI introduced a new rhythm in which workers managed several active threads at once. Aruna Ranganathan and Xingqi Maggie Ye from Berkeley Haas School of Business report initial findings in the HBR from their April to December 2025 study of 200 employees at a “U.S.-based technology company”.Key Insights
“AI introduced a new rhythm in which workers managed several active threads at once.” — Describes the multitasking and continuous engagement required when working with AI.
“The productivity boost these things can provide is exhausting.” — Reflects on the personal experience of the author with the demanding nature of AI-enhanced productivity.
“The HBR piece calls for organizations to build an ‘AI practice’ that structures how AI is used to help avoid burnout.” — Highlights the need for structured AI practices to mitigate burnout and manage productivity sustainably.
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Full Article
Published: 2026-02-09
Source: https://simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/9/ai-intensifies-work/#atom-everything
AI Doesn’t Reduce Work—It Intensifies It Aruna Ranganathan and Xingqi Maggie Ye from Berkeley Haas School of Business report initial findings in the HBR from their April to December 2025 study of 200 employees at a “U.S.-based technology company”. This captures an effect I’ve been observing in my own work with LLMs: the productivity boost these things can provide is exhausting.
AI introduced a new rhythm in which workers managed several active threads at once: manually writing code while AI generated an alternative version, running multiple agents in parallel, or reviving long-deferred tasks because AI could “handle them” in the background. They did this, in part, because they felt they had a “partner” that could help them move through their workload. While this sense of having a “partner” enabled a feeling of momentum, the reality was a continual switching of attention, frequent checking of AI outputs, and a growing number of open tasks. This created cognitive load and a sense of always juggling, even as the work felt productive.I’m frequently finding myself with work on two or three projects running parallel. I can get so much done, but after just an hour or two my mental energy for the day feels almost entirely depleted. I’ve had conversations with people recently who are losing sleep because they’re finding building yet another feature with “just one more prompt” irresistible. The HBR piece calls for organizations to build an “AI practice” that structures how AI is used to help avoid burnout and counter effects that “make it harder for organizations to distinguish genuine productivity gains from unsustainable intensity”. I think we’ve just disrupted decades of existing intuition about sustainable working practices. It’s going to take a while and some discipline to find a good new balance. Via Hacker News
Key Takeaways
Notable Quotes
AI introduced a new rhythm in which workers managed several active threads at once.Context: Describes the multitasking and continuous engagement required when working with AI.
The productivity boost these things can provide is exhausting.Context: Reflects on the personal experience of the author with the demanding nature of AI-enhanced productivity.
The HBR piece calls for organizations to build an ‘AI practice’ that structures how AI is used to help avoid burnout.Context: Highlights the need for structured AI practices to mitigate burnout and manage productivity sustainably.
Related Topics
- [[topics/cognitive-load]]
- [[topics/ai-agents]]
- [[topics/sustainable-working-practices]]
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Originally published at https://simonwillison.net/2026/Feb/9/ai-intensifies-work/#atom-everything.