How workers are unlocking new ways of working
OpenAI's analysis of 1.5 million ChatGPT work messages finds cross-occupation AI tasks becoming recurring parts of workers' routines.
OpenAI's latest Work at the Frontier research analyzed more than 1.5 million work-related ChatGPT messages from April through July 2026. Among roughly 6,200 consistently observed workers, previously used cross-occupation tasks grew from 13.1% of occupation-specific AI activity in April to 25.9% in July. Workers returned to a cross-occupation task used the prior month 23.6% of the time versus an 8.4% baseline, with an average next-month return rate of 18.5%. Recurrence was highest for customer discussions (54%), advertising copy (44%), and marketing materials (37%), suggesting AI may broaden jobs before titles change.
- Cross-occupation AI activity rose from 13.1% to 25.9% of occupation-specific use, April to July 2026.
- Workers returned to previously used cross-occupation tasks 23.6% of the time versus 8.4% baseline.
- Highest recurrence: customer discussions (54%), advertising copy (44%), marketing materials (37%).
- Workers write shorter prompts outside their roles, supplying context rather than requesting explanations.
- Findings suggest work design matters alongside AI tool access in organizational adoption strategies.
From the original article
4 min read at openai.com
New OpenAI Economic Research shows how workers use AI beyond traditional roles and which new activities become recurring parts of their work.
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