Generative AI and the Reallocation of Time: Productivity, Leisure, and Fulfilling Work

Using a representative survey of Korean workers, we provide evidence on the adoption of Generative AI (GenAI) and how GenAI reallocates time at work. We find that 51.8% of workers use GenAI for work and GenAI reduces working time by 3.8%. However, these gains may not materialize in aggregate productivity statistics yet: the correlation between time savings and output changes is near zero. We show this disconnect arises because workers capture efficiency gains primarily as on-the-job leisure, rather than increasing their output. These findings suggest that standard productivity measures may understate AI's impact by missing non-pecuniary welfare channels.

Source: arXiv:2602.12695v1 - http://arxiv.org/abs/2602.12695v1 PDF: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2602.12695v1 Original Link: http://arxiv.org/abs/2602.12695v1