Although AI has provided an immense boost to workforce productivity, 50 per cent of employees say they rely too much on the technology, and 30 per cent feel they can’t function without it, according to a report by GoTo. 39 per cent feel their overreliance on AI tools is eroding their skills and making them less intelligent.‘The Pulse of Work in 2026: Opportunity, Risk, and Responsibility in an AI-Driven Workplace’ report summarizes the findings of a survey of 2,500 global employees and IT leaders on AI use and sentiment, conducted in partnership with research firm Workplace Intelligence. According to the report, these sentiments are especially prevalent among younger workers, with nearly half of Gen Z (46 per cent) reporting that relying too much on AI is making them less intelligent. A key reason for this overreliance may be the rising expectation to use AI more in the workplace: 60 per cent of employees report feeling pressured to use these tools to boost their productivity. Combined with a lack of effective training, policies, and guardrails, this dynamic is leading many employees to use AI irresponsibly, creating real problems with AI misuse and “work-slop.” This can also lead to serious consequences for businesses, as nearly one in four IT leaders say AI mistakes have already affected customers, clients, or their company’s bottom line. “The opportunity in front of us with AI is enormous. Employees are spending an estimated 2.6 hours every day on tasks that AI could handle, and in the U.S. alone, that translates to more than $2.9 trillion in potential efficiency gains annually,” said Rich Veldran, CEO of GoTo.“At the same time, 80 per cent of employees admit they aren’t using AI to its full potential, and 69% aren’t very familiar with how it can be practically applied in their role. This is a big opportunity for companies. Organizations need to invest in the right enablement, resources, and guardrails to enable their people to bridge that gap — and when they do, the productivity and economic impact could be staggering. The goal isn’t just smarter technology; it’s a smarter, more empowered workforce.” The report also found that nearly 3 in 10 employees feel AI is doing their job better than they can (29 per cent) and say they’ve started trusting AI more than their own judgment (28 per cent).41 per cent of employees, including 50 per cent of Gen Z, believe relying on AI too much will hurt their career prospects in the long run. 70 per cent of employees, up from 54 per cent last year, admit they’ve used AI for sensitive or high-stakes tasks, such as legal or compliance-driven work (41 per cent), work requiring emotional intelligence (37 per cent), tasks impacting safety (31 per cent), high-stakes strategic decisions (29 per cent), ethical or sensitive personnel actions (28 per cent), and tasks involving sensitive or confidential information (23 per cent). 43 per cent of employees say they’ve used AI-generated content despite suspecting it was low quality or might contain errors or fabricated information. Most respondents (77 per cent) say AI-generated work takes more time to review than human work, and 66 per cent say reviewing other people’s AI “work-slop” creates additional work for them. The research findings are based on a survey conducted by GoTo and Workplace Intelligence from November 2025 through January 2026. In total, 2,500 global workers completed the survey, including 1,250 full-time knowledge workers and 1,250 IT decision-makers. The survey targeted respondents in India, the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Mexico, and Brazil. Published on May 20, 2026