Businesses everywhere are racing to adopt artificial intelligence (AI), hoping for greater speed, efficiency and innovation. The reality is far more complicated. Instead of boosting productivity, a new phenomenon called "workslop" is causing many companies to waste time and money.
AI produces polished content that lacks real value
Large language models can write fluent, grammatically clean prose, but they often stumble on accuracy and clarity. Without human review, their output creates more confusion than benefit. Harvard Business Review (HBR) calls this phenomenon "workslop" - results that look useful but actually slow down the workflow.
According to research from HBR's BetterUp Labs and the Stanford Social Media Lab, many AI-generated documents look professional but lack the substance needed to get a task done. An ongoing survey of full-time employees in the US found that 40% of respondents had received this kind of output in the past month alone. On average, each incident costs an employee nearly two hours to fix or reinterpret. Across large organizations, that adds up to thousands of lost workdays every year and millions of dollars in hidden costs.
It hurts both efficiency and employee morale
A retail executive quoted by HBR said his company's AI rollout actually ate up more of his time: double-checking information, doing his own research, and even scheduling extra meetings with colleagues to sort out problems. In the end, he had to redo all the work the AI had gotten wrong.
The frustration doesn't come only from the extra work. It also affects how employees feel. More than half of the survey participants (53%) said they were annoyed to receive low-quality AI output, and nearly a quarter (22%) said they felt insulted. Colleagues who sent along such documents were even judged to be less capable and less reliable, which shows the ripple effect reaching team cohesion as well.
Many AI projects fail to deliver real value
Although AI adoption in the workplace has surged - according to Gallup, the number of US employees using AI at least a few times a year has nearly doubled - many pilot programs have not delivered the expected results. A study from the MIT Media Lab found that fewer than 1 in 10 AI projects generate real revenue, and warned that as many as 95% of organizations see no return on their investment in the technology.
The cause lies not only in the technology itself but also in how it is rolled out. Forcing employees to use AI at every step often leads to formulaic work and indiscriminate copying instead of thoughtful use. The researchers recommend clear guidelines, sensible processes and, above all, leaders who set an example in how they use AI. That includes defining exactly where AI should play a role - such as helping with first drafts or summarizing simple documents - while keeping humans in charge of reviewing the final output.
In short, AI certainly offers big opportunities, but if it is overused or used without direction, it becomes a burden rather than a helpful tool. The lesson for businesses is not to apply AI everywhere indiscriminately, but to have a clear strategy and focus on the areas where it can deliver real results. Only when the power of AI is sensibly combined with human oversight can it truly improve productivity and creativity.
