In a 2023 paper from the U.S. National Bureau of Economic Research, “Generative
AI at Work,” Erik Brynjolfsson, Danielle Li and Lindsey R. Raymond examined how
GenAI might capture and share knowledge that has eluded prior waves of
automation.

This study of over 5,000 customer support workers who use a GenAI-based
conversational assistant found that productivity increased by 14% on average, with a
34% increase among newly employed staff. Experienced and highly skilled workers
exhibited minimal improvement in productivity. Nevertheless, as 60% of contact
center workers quit each year, according to this study’s sources, this 14% average
improvement bodes well.

Yet, as the authors comment, “because many workplace activities — such as writing
emails, analyzing data, or creating presentations — rely on tacit knowledge, they have
so far defied automation.” More automation would be the real knowledge
management prize for GenAI.