How is AI changing work?
AI can speed up certain tasks, but the effects on quality and jobs are not the same everywhere.
What is it?
AI can speed up writing, summarising, programming and finding information. Research shows the effect is not the same everywhere: quality improves on some tasks and errors increase on others. What matters most is how it is built into the work.
An everyday example
A clerk uses AI to draft a reply to a customer in minutes, but has to check that the deadlines and clauses quoted are correct.
Why does it matter?
How AI is used at work affects productivity, quality, data privacy and which skills will be needed.
A common misconception
That a task done faster is a task done better. Some of the time saved has to go into checking.
In more detail
Which tasks are a good fit?
Drafts, summaries, translation, searching documents, help with programming and data analysis.
Where is review needed?
For information going to the public, contracts, hiring, finances and decisions with big consequences.
Does it increase productivity?
Often it can, but the effect depends on skills, the process, quality, and measuring the whole job — including the corrections.
What should an organisation do?
Decide which tasks are allowed, how data is protected, who is responsible and what quality standards apply.
Remember: A task finished faster is not necessarily a task done better.
Reliable sources
Last reviewed 1 November 2026. An explainer, not professional, legal or medical advice. For rules and figures that change, check the official version.