More U.S. adults are using ChatGPT, with 23% of adults saying they’ve used it as of February 2024, up from 18% in July 2023, according to a March 26 report from Pew Research Center.
Twenty percent of employed respondents said they’ve used ChatGPT to complete tasks at work, up from 8% in March 2023 and 12% in July 2023.
“It’s been more than a year since ChatGPT’s public debut set the tech world abuzz,” Colleen McClain, a research associate focused on internet and technology research at Pew Research Center, wrote in the report. “And Americans’ use of the chatbot is ticking up.”
In general, adults under age 30 are more likely to use the generative AI tool. About 43% of those age 18-29 said they’ve used ChatGPT, up from 33% during the summer of 2023.
Younger adults are more likely to use ChatGPT at work, too. About 31% of ages 18-29 said they’ve used the tool for tasks in the workplace, up from 12% in March 2023. ChatGPT use at work is lower among other age groups, at 21% for those age 30-49 and 10% for those 50 and older.
Adults under 30 are also more likely to use ChatGPT for learning. About 31% of those age 18-29 said they’ve used it to learn something new, as compared to 22% of respondents age 30-49 and 9% of those 50 and older.
Despite growing adoption of generative AI tools at work, companies haven’t realized major productivity gains so far, according to a report from the Oliver Wyman Forum. Several barriers exist: Most employees still need training to gain productivity benefits, and some leaders are concerned about job replacement, the report found.
But for HR professionals, generative AI may help save time throughout the talent lifecycle, according to a practitioner at Brightside. HR teams may be able to use these tools to write job descriptions, find and screen talent, draft performance reviews and summarize interviews, she said.
Some hurdles to adoption remain, however. Among other things, employees will need AI literacy skills to adapt, according to a CompTIA report. Workers can benefit from several learning and development options, such as short online programs about AI basics, targeted training for specific job roles and hands-on experience in existing workflows. Some also have raised bias and privacy concerns stemming from the tech’s use.