Many are turning to AI to escape from repetitive tasks in the workplace, new study reveals

American workers’ productivity peaks at 11 a.m.on Mondays, according to new research.The survey of 2,000 knowledge workers revealed when respondents are most productive — and when they’re least productive, which was found to be Fridays at 12:06 p.m.While most workers (56%) are “very productive” throughout the average workday, respondents admitted they have an average of 53 tasks per week that ruin their productive momentum.This leads to over three and a half hours of “lost productivity” per week.Commissioned by Grammarly and conducted by Talker Research, the survey examined what tasks are impacting Americans’ productivity and how AI may be a solution for some.Forty-four percent of workers surveyed said they “hate” the repetitive aspects of their job.Younger respondents were more likely to agree — 57% of Gen Z workers dislike the mundane aspects, compared to 42% of Gen X.Perhaps because of this, 62% of respondents said there are tasks they’d like to use AI for within their job.When asked what they’d find beneficial with an AI tool, employees highlighted having a tool that’s easy to use (49%) and can help draft emails for them (35%), as well as something that’s easy to prompt (35%).

They’d also like a tool that can help with their repetitive tasks, with about a third of respondents wanting to use AI to sort data in a spreadsheet (34%) or draft notes in a meeting (33%).That’s in addition to a tool that can take on simple workflows autonomously (31%) and integrates well with existing tools workers use (31%).“We’re seeing professionals turn to AI to automate repetitive tasks through intuitive, user-friendly tools that fit naturally into their existing workflows,” said Heather Breslow, Head of UX and Marketing Research at Grammarly.“By minimizing the tedious tasks that get in the way of true productivity, AI users have time to focus on more meaningful work that requires their judgment, creativity and care.”Despite workers ...