Company directors are trying to get a handle on artificial intelligence as its use soars, bringing potential productivity gains—but also raising the prospect of employee blunders.

Ethan Mollick at the University of Pennsylvania has become the go-to authority on the new technology

There are many use cases for generative AI, spanning a vast number of areas of domestic and work life. Looking through thousands of comments on sites such as Reddit and Quora, the author’s team found that the use of this technology is as wide-ranging as the problems we encounter in our lives. The 100 categories they identified can be divided into six top-level themes, which give an immediate sense of what generative AI is being used for: Technical Assistance & Troubleshooting (23%), Content Creation & Editing (22%), Personal & Professional Support (17%), Learning & Education (15%), Creativity & Recreation (13%), Research, Analysis & Decision Making (10%).

Jobs up and down the corporate food chain have been cut in the most recent cascade of layoffs. Leaders say the fast-evolving technology means many may never return.

There are some areas where AI is surpassing human capabilities — but there are several it can’t replace. Based on their research into employees’ comfort with AI in management, as well as their decades of research on the qualities of effective leadership, the authors identify the promise (and perils) of AI-enabled management, as well as the three uniquely human capabilities leaders need to focus on honing, especially as AI begins to figure more in management: 1) awareness, 2) compassion, and 3) wisdom.

ChatGPT is actually good news for the office.

Learn the prompt crafting knowledge and skills you need to become your company’s expert on generative AI for marketing content creation.