AI activity is not AI productivity
More tools, users, and pilots can still leave one important question unanswered: what part of the business is actually working better?
Haroon ChouderyFounder of AI Ready. Previously co-founded Autoblocks and started A.I. For Anyone.
I’ve spent the last week thinking about a distinction I suspect a lot of companies are about to run into: AI activity is not AI productivity.
Both can produce new tools, busy Slack channels, impressive demos, internal champions, and a growing list of pilots. But activity tells you that AI is happening. Productivity tells you whether the business is actually working better because of it.
The gap
Microsoft and LinkedIn’s 2024 Work Trend Index captured the tension early.
In its survey of 31,000 people across 31 countries, 75% of knowledge workers said they were already using AI at work. At the same time, 59% of leaders worried about quantifying the productivity gains, and 60% worried that their company lacked a vision and implementation plan.
Activity tells you that AI is happening. Productivity tells you whether the business is actually working better because of it.
A better test
Instead of asking how many people are using AI, I would start with four questions:
- Which workflow changed? Name the actual sequence of work, not the tool or department.
- Which business result should improve? Choose cost, speed, quality, or growth, then establish a baseline.
- What makes the result dependable? Identify the context AI can trust, the standard for a good output, and where human review belongs.
- Who owns the outcome, and can other people repeat it? A personal technique becomes an organizational capability only when it can spread and survive beyond its original creator.
Start with one workflow
Pick one frequent, consequential workflow where the result can be measured, and mistakes can be caught. Establish how it works today. Decide what responsibility should belong to AI and what should remain with a person.