Despite claims that artificial intelligence (AI) will reduce work hours, tech workers at companies like OpenAI and Anthropic are working up to 90 hours a week. This is according to employees who spoke to the BBC. In contrast, executives at these companies have suggested that AI will lead to a four-day work week by 2025 or sooner. However, a former OpenAI employee said they never actually trialled the four-day work week while working at the company. Instead, they described a gruelling work culture marked by frequent 'crisis meetings' and 'super cut-throat' performance reviews.
At Meta, workers have been forced onto AI teams, working long hours and feeling 'on call' outside of work hours. A study out of UC Berkeley found that AI tools made employees work at a faster pace, take on more tasks, and extend their work hours. This suggests that even if AI does lead to time savings, it may be 'sucked up' by the need to constantly check the output of AI tools and implement changes.