Burnout is increasingly surfacing among employees who rely heavily on artificial intelligence, challenging the belief that AI automatically makes work easier. New research suggests that instead of freeing up time, AI tools may be quietly expanding workloads and pushing employees closer to exhaustion.
For nearly 3 years, the dominant message around AI in the workplace has been optimistic. Workers were told that AI would reduce effort, increase efficiency and improve work life balance. The idea was simple. AI would handle routine tasks, leaving professionals with more time and less stress. However, a new study published in a business journal suggests this promise may be leading organizations toward higher burnout rather than relief.
Burnout became evident during an 8 month research project conducted by UC Berkeley researchers inside a 200 person technology company. Through more than 40 in depth interviews, researchers observed what happened when employees fully embraced AI. No one was asked to work longer hours or meet higher targets. Still, workers began taking on more tasks because AI made them feel manageable. Work slowly spilled into lunch breaks and evenings. As one engineer said, “You had thought that maybe, oh, because you could be more productive with AI, then you save some time, you can work less. But then really, you don’t work less. You just work the same amount or even more.”
Similar burnout concerns were echoed on a tech forum, where one employee wrote, “I feel this. Since my team has jumped into an AI everything working style, expectations have tripled, stress has tripled and actual productivity has only gone up by maybe 10%.” Earlier studies reinforce this pattern. One trial found experienced developers using AI took 19% longer on tasks while believing they were 20% faster. Another large scale study found productivity gains of just 3%, with no meaningful reduction in working hours or increase in earnings. Researchers say AI may boost output, but it also fuels burnout by raising expectations for speed, responsiveness and constant availability.
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