The numbers behind the choice
Knowledge Worker Productivity Statistics 2026
This page gathers figures for anyone choosing productivity software or AI assistants: the official productivity baseline, how many people use AI at work, what controlled studies say about time saved, where the workday leaks time and what makes tools pay off. US data comes from the BLS, the St. Louis and New York Feds, Gallup and Pew; global figures come from Microsoft, Owl Labs, Stack Overflow, Stanford HAI and academic studies. Most data covers 2025 and 2026; three landmark experiments from 2023 are included and marked.
By the KeenVerdict research desk · Updated November 4, 2026 · 49 figures from 23 sources
54 of 54 source quotes re-checked against the original pages on November 4, 2026
The short answer
US nonfarm labor productivity rose 2.2% in the year to the second quarter of 2026, according to the BLS, and St. Louis Fed researchers estimate generative AI saved time equal to 1.6% of all US work hours in 2025. Gallup's February 2026 survey found 13% of US employees use AI daily and 65% of those in AI-adopting organizations say it improved their productivity, while Microsoft's telemetry shows workers interrupted every 2 minutes during core hours.
Key figures
- 2.2%US nonfarm productivity was 2.2% higher in Q2 2026 than a year earlier.U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- 37.4%37.4% of US adults aged 18 to 64 used generative AI for work in August 2025, up from 33.3% a year earlier, in the St. Louis Fed's Real-Time Population Survey.Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
- 13%13% of US employees used AI at work daily and 28% used it a few times a week or more in Gallup's February 2026 survey, when half used it at least a few times a year for the first time.Gallup
- 1.6%Across the whole US workforce, generative AI saved time equal to 1.6% of all work hours in 2025.Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
- 19%Experienced open-source developers took 19% longer to finish issues when allowed AI tools in METR's 2025 randomized trial.METR
- 275Microsoft 365 users are interrupted every 2 minutes during core hours by a meeting, email or chat, about 275 times a day (2025).Microsoft
- 65%65% of US employees in organizations that have implemented AI said it has improved their productivity and efficiency, in Gallup's February 2026 survey of 23,717 employees.Gallup
- 67%Organizational factors such as culture and manager support account for 67% of reported AI impact, against 32% for individual mindset and behavior (Microsoft, 2026).Microsoft
Our reading of the data
Start with the baseline. The BLS reports US nonfarm productivity up 2.2% over the year to the second quarter of 2026 and growing at 2.1% a year since late 2019, the same as its long-run rate since 1947. St. Louis Fed researchers estimate generative AI may have raised labor productivity by up to 1.3% since ChatGPT's launch. The effect is real but modest, and claims of doubled output go beyond the evidence.
Adoption depends on who is asked. The St. Louis Fed put work use of generative AI at 37.4% of US adults aged 18 to 64 in August 2025, Gallup found half of US employees used AI at least a few times a year by February 2026 with 13% using it daily, and Owl Labs found 80% of the office employees it surveyed use AI at work. Among small employers, the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey found 46% using AI tools. The buying question has shifted from whether to adopt to which tool to standardize on and how to govern it.
Measured gains depend on the task. An NBER study found a 14% lift for support agents, an MIT experiment a 40% time cut on writing and a Harvard Business School experiment 25.1% faster work on consulting tasks inside AI's reach, all from 2023. In 2025, METR found experienced developers 19% slower with AI tools, and Danish data analyzed by NBER researchers ruled out effects on earnings or hours above 2%. Stanford HAI's 2026 AI Index summarizes the pattern: gains are largest in structured, measurable work.
The environment matters as much as the tool. Microsoft logs an interruption every two minutes for Microsoft 365 users, and Atlassian found teams waste 25% of their time searching for answers. Gallup reported only 22% of US employees had heard a clear AI plan, and Microsoft's 2026 research credits organizational factors with 67% of reported AI impact. Buy tools that cut interruptions and search time, then invest in rollout.
The productivity baseline
- 1.
US nonfarm business labor productivity rose at a 1.4% seasonally adjusted annualized rate in the second quarter of 2026, as output grew 1.7% and hours worked 0.3%.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2026, Revised (Sep 2026)
Source quote
Nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased 1.4 percent in the second quarter of 2026, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, as output increased 1.7 percent and hours worked increased 0.3 percent.
- 2.
US nonfarm productivity was 2.2% higher in Q2 2026 than a year earlier.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2026, Revised (Sep 2026)
Source quote
From the same quarter a year ago, nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased 2.2 percent in the second quarter of 2026.
- 3.
From the fourth quarter of 2019 through the second quarter of 2026, US nonfarm labor productivity grew at a 2.1% annualized rate, faster than the 1.5% of the 2007 to 2019 business cycle.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2026, Revised (Sep 2026)
Source quote
The 2.1-percent annualized rate of nonfarm business productivity growth in the current business cycle thus far is higher than the 1.5-percent rate of the previous business cycle, from the fourth quarter of 2007 through the fourth quarter of 2019, and the same as the long-term rate of 2.1 percent since the first quarter of 1947.
- 4.
The US labor share fell to 52.8% in Q2 2026, the lowest since the series began in 1947.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2026, Revised (Sep 2026)
Source quote
The labor share, which is the percentage of output that accrues to workers in the form of compensation, was 52.8 percent in the second quarter of 2026, the lowest level in the series, which begins in the first quarter of 1947.
- 5.
US labor productivity grew at a 2.16% annualized rate from the fourth quarter of 2022 through the second quarter of 2025, compared with 1.43% a year in 2015 to 2019, St. Louis Fed researchers noted.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025)
Source quote
By contrast, from the fourth quarter of 2022 through the second quarter of 2025, aggregate labor productivity increased by 2.16% on an annualized basis.
- 6.
Global employee engagement fell to 20% in 2025, which Gallup estimates cost the world economy about $10 trillion in lost productivity.
Gallup, State of the Global Workplace (2026)
Source quote
The 2026 edition finds that global employee engagement fell to 20% in 2025, its lowest level since 2020, costing the world economy an estimated $10 trillion in lost productivity.
- 7.
Full-time employed Americans worked an average of 8.1 hours on the days they worked in 2025.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey Summary, 2025 Results (Jun 2026)
Source quote
On days they worked, full-time employed people worked an average of 8.1 hours.
- 8.
On days they worked in 2025, 35% of employed Americans did some or all of their work at home.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Time Use Survey Summary, 2025 Results (Jun 2026)
Source quote
On days they worked, 35 percent of employed people did some or all of their work at home and 70 percent of employed people did some or all of their work at their workplace.
How many workers use AI tools
- 9.
37.4% of US adults aged 18 to 64 used generative AI for work in August 2025, up from 33.3% a year earlier, in the St. Louis Fed's Real-Time Population Survey.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025)
Source quote
In the last 12 months, work adoption increased from 33.3% to 37.4%.
- 10.
54.6% of US adults aged 18 to 64 used generative AI in 2025, up 10 points in a year.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025)
Source quote
In the last 12 months, adoption of this new technology increased by 10 percentage points to 54.6%.
- 11.
40% of US employees said in 2025 that they had used AI in their role a few times a year or more, up from 21% two years earlier.
Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025)
Source quote
In the past two years, the percentage of U.S. employees who say they have used AI in their role a few times a year or more has nearly doubled, from 21% to 40%.
- 12.
Daily AI use at work doubled to 8% of US employees in the 12 months to mid 2025.
Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025)
Source quote
Daily use has doubled in the past 12 months alone, from 4% to 8%.
- 13.
33% of US leaders who manage other managers used AI a few times a week or more in 2025, twice the rate of individual contributors.
Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025)
Source quote
Frequent AI use is also more common among leaders (defined as managers of managers), at 33%.
- 14.
13% of US employees used AI at work daily and 28% used it a few times a week or more in Gallup's February 2026 survey, when half used it at least a few times a year for the first time.
Gallup, Rising AI Adoption Spurs Workforce Changes (Apr 2026)
Source quote
Frequent AI use is also increasing, with 13% of employees now saying they use AI daily and 28% reporting they use it a few times a week or more.
- 15.
28% of employed US adults said in 2025 that they use ChatGPT for work, up 20 points in two years.
Pew Research Center, 34% of U.S. adults have used ChatGPT, about double the share in 2023 (Jun 2025)
Source quote
In two years, the share of employed adults who say they use ChatGPT for work has risen by 20 percentage points to 28%.
- 16.
80% of employees in Owl Labs' 2025 State of Hybrid Work survey said they use AI at work, up from 72% in 2024.
Owl Labs, State of Hybrid Work 2025 (2025)
Source quote
This year, 80% of employees say they’re using AI in the workplace, up from 72% in 2024.
- 17.
51% of professional developers used AI tools daily in Stack Overflow's 2025 survey.
Stack Overflow, 2025 Developer Survey: AI (Jul 2025)
Source quote
This year we can see 51% of professional developers use AI tools daily.
- 18.
46% of US small employer firms said their business or employees were using AI tools in the Federal Reserve Banks' 2025 Small Business Credit Survey, and another 15% planned to adopt them within a year.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, AI Adoption and Employment Expectations: Evidence from a Survey of Small Business Owners (Oct 2026)
Source quote
In the SBCS report on findings from the 2025 survey, 46 percent of firms with at least one employee stated that their business or employees were using AI tools, with another 15 percent planning to adopt them in the next twelve months.
- 19.
27% of employees in Owl Labs' 2025 survey said they use AI daily to streamline tasks.
Owl Labs, State of Hybrid Work 2025 (2025)
Source quote
More than a quarter (27%) report using it daily to streamline tasks and boost productivity.
Chart
US employees using AI at work, by frequency, 2025
Gallup Panel survey of US employees, 2025.
- A few times a year or more40%
- A few times a week or more19%
- Daily8%
Source: Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years
Measured time savings from AI
- 20.
Across the whole US workforce, generative AI saved time equal to 1.6% of all work hours in 2025.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025)
Source quote
Factoring in all workers, including nonusers, workers report generative AI time savings equivalent to 1.6% of all work hours.
- 21.
St. Louis Fed researchers estimate generative AI may have raised US labor productivity by up to 1.3% since ChatGPT launched.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025)
Source quote
When we feed these estimates into a standard aggregate production model, this suggests that generative AI may have increased labor productivity by up to 1.3% since the introduction of ChatGPT.
- 22.
US workers who used generative AI saved an average of 5.4% of their work hours in November 2024, about 2.2 hours in a 40-hour week.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The Impact of Generative AI on Work Productivity (Feb 2025)
Source quote
We found an average time savings of 5.4% of work hours in the November 2024 survey.
- 23.
In an NBER working paper first issued in 2023, access to an AI assistant raised customer support agents' issues resolved per hour by 14% on average, and by 34% for novice and low-skilled agents, in a study of 5,179 agents.
National Bureau of Economic Research, Generative AI at Work (Working Paper 31161) (Nov 2023)
Source quote
Access to the tool increases productivity, as measured by issues resolved per hour, by 14% on average, including a 34% improvement for novice and low-skilled workers but with minimal impact on experienced and highly skilled workers.
- 24.
In a 2023 MIT experiment with professional writing tasks, ChatGPT cut the time workers took by 40% and raised output quality, as rated by independent evaluators, by 18%.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Study finds ChatGPT boosts worker productivity for some writing tasks (Jul 2023)
Source quote
Access to the assistive chatbot ChatGPT decreased the time it took workers to complete the tasks by 40 percent, and output quality, as measured by independent evaluators, rose by 18 percent.
- 25.
In a 2023 Harvard Business School field experiment with 758 consultants, those using GPT-4 on tasks within AI's capabilities completed 12.2% more tasks and worked 25.1% faster.
Harvard Business School, Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier: Field Experimental Evidence of the Effects of AI on Knowledge Worker Productivity and Quality (Sep 2023)
Source quote
For each one of a set of 18 realistic knowledge tasks within the frontier of AI capabilities ranging from creative to analytical tasks, subjects using AI outperformed those not using AI, completing 12.2% more tasks and completing them 25.1% more quickly on average while also delivering solutions of significantly improved quality.
- 26.
Experienced open-source developers took 19% longer to finish issues when allowed AI tools in METR's 2025 randomized trial.
METR, Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity (Jul 2025)
Source quote
When developers are allowed to use AI tools, they take 19% longer to complete issues—a significant slowdown that goes against developer beliefs and expert forecasts.
- 27.
The same developers had expected AI to speed them up by 24%, and still believed afterward it had sped them up by 20% (METR, 2025).
METR, Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity (Jul 2025)
Source quote
This gap between perception and reality is striking: developers expected AI to speed them up by 24%, and even after experiencing the slowdown, they still believed AI had sped them up by 20%.
- 28.
Anthropic's 2025 analysis of 100,000 Claude conversations estimated that current AI models could raise US labor productivity growth by 1.8% a year over the next decade; the estimate does not account for the pace of adoption.
Anthropic, Estimating AI productivity gains (Nov 2025)
Source quote
Extrapolating these estimates out suggests current-generation AI models could increase US labor productivity growth by 1.8% annually over the next decade — roughly twice the run rate in recent years.
- 29.
NBER researchers linking Danish adoption surveys to administrative records ruled out effects of AI chatbots on earnings or recorded hours larger than 2%, two years after ChatGPT's launch.
National Bureau of Economic Research, Still Waters, Rapid Currents: Early Labor Market Transformation under Generative AI (Working Paper 33777) (2025)
Source quote
Yet these currents have not broken the surface: using difference-indifferences, we estimate precise null effects on earnings and recorded hours at both the worker and workplace levels, ruling out effects larger than 2% two years after the launch of ChatGPT.
- 30.
Stanford HAI's 2026 AI Index found studies reporting productivity gains from AI of 14% to 15% in customer support, 26% in software development and 50% in marketing output, with smaller gains in less structured work.
Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, Economy: The 2026 AI Index Report (Apr 2026)
Source quote
Studies report gains of 14% to 15% in customer support, 26% in software development, and 50% in marketing output.
Chart
AI users reporting hours saved in the previous week
US workers who used generative AI in the previous week, August and November 2024 surveys pooled.
- 4 hours or more20.5%
- 3 hours20.1%
- 2 hours26.4%
- 1 hour or less33%
Source: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, The Impact of Generative AI on Work Productivity
Interruptions, search and overload
- 31.
Microsoft 365 users are interrupted every 2 minutes during core hours by a meeting, email or chat, about 275 times a day (2025).
Microsoft, Breaking Down the Infinite Workday (Jun 2025)
Source quote
Employees are interrupted every two minutes during core work hours—275 times a day—by meetings, emails, or chats.
- 32.
48% of employees and 52% of leaders said their work feels chaotic and fragmented in Microsoft's 2025 global survey.
Microsoft, Breaking Down the Infinite Workday (Jun 2025)
Source quote
In fact, our global Work Trend Index survey shows that nearly half of employees ( 48% )—and more than half of leaders ( 52% )—say their work feels chaotic and fragmented.
- 33.
The average Microsoft 365 user receives 117 emails a day, most skimmed in under 60 seconds (2025).
Microsoft, Breaking Down the Infinite Workday (Jun 2025)
Source quote
The average worker receives 117 emails daily—most of them skimmed in under 60 seconds.
- 34.
The average Microsoft Teams user receives 153 Teams messages per weekday (2025).
Microsoft, Breaking Down the Infinite Workday (Jun 2025)
Source quote
The average worker receives 153 Teams messages per weekday.
- 35.
Atlassian's 2025 survey of 12,000 knowledge workers found teams waste 25% of their time searching for answers.
Atlassian, State of Teams 2025 (Mar 2025)
Source quote
Atlassian’s survey of 12,000 knowledge workers and 200 executives found that leaders and teams waste 25% of their time just searching for answers.
- 36.
80% of the global workforce said they lack enough time or energy to do their work, while 53% of leaders said productivity must rise (Microsoft, 2025).
Microsoft, 2025 Work Trend Index Annual Report: The Year the Frontier Firm Is Born (Apr 2025)
Source quote
Our data reveals a capacity gap : 53% of leaders say productivity must increase , but 80% of the global workforce —both employees and leaders—say they’re lacking enough time or energy to do their work.
- 37.
49% of Microsoft 365 Copilot chats in a February 2026 sample of more than 100,000 supported cognitive work such as analysis, problem-solving and evaluation, Microsoft reported.
Microsoft, 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity (2026)
Source quote
A privacy-preserving analysis of more than 100,000 chats in Microsoft 365 Copilot shows that 49% of all conversations support cognitive work—helping workers analyze information, solve problems, evaluate, and think creatively.
Chart
What Microsoft 365 Copilot chats are used for, February 2026
Share of classified Copilot user goals in one week of Microsoft 365 Copilot telemetry, February 2026.
- Cognitive work49%
- Working with people19%
- Producing work17%
- Finding information15%
Source: Microsoft, 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity
What makes productivity tools pay off
- 38.
44% of US employees said their organization had begun integrating AI in 2025, but only 22% said it had communicated a clear plan.
Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025)
Source quote
While 44% of employees say their organization has begun integrating AI, only 22% say their organization has communicated a clear plan or strategy for doing so.
- 39.
Only 16% of US AI users strongly agreed in 2025 that the AI tools their organization provides are useful for their work.
Gallup, AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025)
Source quote
Even among those who report using AI, only 16% strongly agree that the AI tools provided by their organization are useful for their work.
- 40.
65% of US employees in organizations that have implemented AI said it has improved their productivity and efficiency, in Gallup's February 2026 survey of 23,717 employees.
Gallup, Rising AI Adoption Spurs Workforce Changes (Apr 2026)
Source quote
Within organizations implementing AI, 65% of employees say artificial intelligence has improved their productivity and efficiency, regardless of how often they personally use AI.
- 41.
66% of AI users in Microsoft's 2026 survey said AI lets them spend more time on high-value work.
Microsoft, 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity (2026)
Source quote
The data backs this up: 66% of AI users we surveyed 4 say AI has allowed them to spend more time on high-value work and 58% say they’re producing work they couldn’t have a year ago.
- 42.
Only 26% of AI users said their leadership is clearly and consistently aligned on AI in Microsoft's 2026 survey.
Microsoft, 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity (2026)
Source quote
Only one in four AI users surveyed (26%) say their leadership is clearly and consistently aligned on AI.
- 43.
Organizational factors such as culture and manager support account for 67% of reported AI impact, against 32% for individual mindset and behavior (Microsoft, 2026).
Microsoft, 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity (2026)
Source quote
Organizational factors—culture, manager support, talent practices—account for more than 2x of AI’s real impact (67%) as individual mindset and behavior (32%).
- 44.
52% of US workers said they were worried about the future impact of AI in the workplace in late 2024.
Pew Research Center, U.S. Workers Are More Worried Than Hopeful About Future AI Use in the Workplace (Feb 2025)
Source quote
About half of workers (52%) say they’re worried about the future impact of AI use in the workplace, and 32% think it will lead to fewer job opportunities for them in the long run, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.
- 45.
69% of developers who use AI agents said agents have increased their productivity (Stack Overflow, 2025).
Stack Overflow, 2025 Developer Survey: AI (Jul 2025)
Source quote
Approximately 70% of agent users agree that agents have reduced the time spent on specific development tasks, and 69% agree they have increased productivity.
- 46.
46% of developers in Stack Overflow's 2025 survey said they distrust the accuracy of AI tools, against 33% who trust it.
Stack Overflow, 2025 Developer Survey: AI (Jul 2025)
Source quote
More developers actively distrust the accuracy of AI tools (46%) than trust it (33%), and only a fraction (3%) report "highly trusting" the output.
- 47.
77% of US small employer firms in the 2025 Small Business Credit Survey reported no change in their current labor costs from using AI.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, AI Adoption and Employment Expectations: Evidence from a Survey of Small Business Owners (Oct 2026)
Source quote
In the SBCS survey, 77 percent of respondents reported no change in their firm’s current labor costs from the use of AI.
- 48.
63% of US small businesses using AI said it was somewhat or very important to production, and 51% had integrated it partly or fully into business processes (2025 Small Business Credit Survey).
Federal Reserve Bank of New York, AI Adoption and Employment Expectations: Evidence from a Survey of Small Business Owners (Oct 2026)
Source quote
Furthermore, among AI users, 63 percent said that AI was somewhat or very important to production and 51 percent had integrated AI partially or fully in their business processes.
- 49.
Employment of US software developers aged 22 to 25 fell nearly 20% from 2024, Stanford HAI's 2026 AI Index reported, as AI's labor effects concentrated on young workers in exposed jobs.
Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, Economy: The 2026 AI Index Report (Apr 2026)
Source quote
Employment for software developers ages 22 to 25 has fallen nearly 20% from 2024.
Questions readers ask
- Does AI actually make knowledge workers more productive?
- On specific tasks, yes. A 2023 NBER study measured a 14% gain for support agents, and a 2023 MIT experiment found ChatGPT cut writing time by 40%. Across the US economy the gain is smaller: St. Louis Fed researchers estimate AI saved time equal to 1.6% of all work hours in 2025.
- How many workers use AI at work?
- The St. Louis Fed found 37.4% of US adults aged 18 to 64 used generative AI for work in August 2025. Gallup's February 2026 survey found 13% of US employees use AI daily and 28% a few times a week or more.
- Can AI tools slow people down?
- Yes. In METR's 2025 randomized trial, experienced open-source developers took 19% longer with AI tools, even though they believed AI had made them 20% faster. A 2023 Harvard Business School experiment also found worse answers on tasks outside AI's strengths.
- How often are knowledge workers interrupted?
- Microsoft's 2025 telemetry shows Microsoft 365 users are interrupted every two minutes during core hours, about 275 times a day, by meetings, emails or chats. The average user receives 117 emails and 153 Teams messages a day.
- What makes productivity software pay off?
- Organizational support matters most. Microsoft's 2026 Work Trend Index attributes 67% of reported AI impact to culture, manager support and talent practices. Gallup found only 22% of US employees said their organization had communicated a clear AI plan in 2025.
How these figures were chosen
We chose figures that help buyers judge productivity and AI tools, and cited the organization that produced each one: statistical agencies, Federal Reserve researchers, working-paper and peer-reviewed studies, and the companies that ran each survey or telemetry analysis. Samples differ widely: BLS and Federal Reserve figures cover the US workforce or US employer firms, Gallup and Pew survey US adults, and Microsoft, Owl Labs, Atlassian and Stack Overflow survey office workers or developers who are heavier technology users. Microsoft and Anthropic research studies those companies' own products. The 2023 experiments from NBER researchers, MIT and Harvard Business School used earlier AI models and are included because they remain the main controlled evidence. BLS figures link to the archived releases for the dates shown. Every quote was copied from the publisher's page and re-checked by our source checker. Read the methodology.
Sources
- Anthropic. Estimating AI productivity gains (Nov 2025).
- Atlassian. State of Teams 2025 (Mar 2025).
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York. AI Adoption and Employment Expectations: Evidence from a Survey of Small Business Owners (Oct 2026).
- Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The State of Generative AI Adoption in 2025 (Nov 2025).
- Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The Impact of Generative AI on Work Productivity (Feb 2025).
- Gallup. State of the Global Workplace (2026).
- Gallup. AI Use at Work Has Nearly Doubled in Two Years (Jun 2025).
- Gallup. Rising AI Adoption Spurs Workforce Changes (Apr 2026).
- Harvard Business School. Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier: Field Experimental Evidence of the Effects of AI on Knowledge Worker Productivity and Quality (Sep 2023).
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Study finds ChatGPT boosts worker productivity for some writing tasks (Jul 2023).
- METR. Measuring the Impact of Early-2025 AI on Experienced Open-Source Developer Productivity (Jul 2025).
- Microsoft. Breaking Down the Infinite Workday (Jun 2025).
- Microsoft. 2025 Work Trend Index Annual Report: The Year the Frontier Firm Is Born (Apr 2025).
- Microsoft. 2026 Work Trend Index report: Agents, human agency, and opportunity (2026).
- National Bureau of Economic Research. Generative AI at Work (Working Paper 31161) (Nov 2023).
- National Bureau of Economic Research. Still Waters, Rapid Currents: Early Labor Market Transformation under Generative AI (Working Paper 33777) (2025).
- Owl Labs. State of Hybrid Work 2025 (2025).
- Pew Research Center. 34% of U.S. adults have used ChatGPT, about double the share in 2023 (Jun 2025).
- Pew Research Center. U.S. Workers Are More Worried Than Hopeful About Future AI Use in the Workplace (Feb 2025).
- Stack Overflow. 2025 Developer Survey: AI (Jul 2025).
- Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. Economy: The 2026 AI Index Report (Apr 2026).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Productivity and Costs, Second Quarter 2026, Revised (Sep 2026).
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. American Time Use Survey Summary, 2025 Results (Jun 2026).
How to cite
Link to this page or to a single figure. Name the original publisher where you can.
KeenVerdict. (2026, November 4). Knowledge Worker Productivity Statistics 2026. https://keenverdict.com/knowledge-worker-productivity-statistics
Questions or corrections: editorial@keenverdict.com. Next scheduled review: January 3, 2027.