New data: AI makes work easier. And lonelier

Still in its infancy, artificial intelligence is delivering even greater benefits than many organizations ever hoped for. According to new global research from Workday, 62% of employees who use AI say it’s reduced their burnout. Fully 86% percent report greater productivity and an improved ability to focus on higher-value work. Nearly two-thirds say AI has increased their confidence in their ability to succeed in future roles. Remarkably, all these findings represent a win for employers and employees. For years, companies have sought to improve efficiency, free up employee time, and reduce employee stress—and AI appears to be capable of accomplishing all three. If you’re wondering where the “but” comes in, it’s here. While AI is clearly helping people work better, it is also weakening the single most important driver of employee well-being there is: human connection. Our growing reliance on AI to brainstorm, get advice, make decisions and even socialize is gradually reducing the everyday interactions through which trust, learning, culture, belonging—and even mental health—are built. Loneliness Scares Workers More Than Layoffs The Workday research reveals a stunning finding: 43% of employees say they are more concerned AI will reduce interactions with colleagues than eliminate their jobs. Already, one-third report rarely or never having conversations with people they work with beyond transactional work tasks during a typical week. Less than half now say it’s easy to make friends at work. Viewed in isolation, these findings would be disconcerting. Viewed in the context of broader social trends, they become even more alarming. Social connections have weakened significantly since COVID, and Americans already report higher levels of loneliness, fewer close friendships, and less time spent with friends than in previous generations. A study by the American Survey Center found that by 2021, the percentage of Americans reporting zero friends had already quadrupled, from 3% t