AI eats leisure time, makes employees work more, study finds

Research analyzing US Bureau of Labor Statistics data from 2004-2023 reveals that workers in occupations with higher AI exposure work an average of 3.15 additional hours per week while experiencing 3.20 fewer leisure hours. Despite productivity gains from AI tools like ChatGPT, the economic benefits primarily flow to employers and consumers rather than workers, who report lower job satisfaction and longer hours due to increased surveillance and productivity demands. The study challenges the assumption that AI automation reduces workload, showing instead that competitive labor markets prevent workers from capturing technology-driven productivity gains.