Generative AI saves only 2.8% of hours

The AI productivity boom is largely an illusion on the balance sheet because companies and individuals fail to actively capture and monetize the minutes saved.

* **The Jagged Frontier trap**: AI's lack of error signaling means users spend significant time debugging confident but incorrect outputs on tasks outside its capabilities.

* **Dilution of gains**: Large task-specific speedups shrink to minor weekly gains once meetings, admin work, and human-in-the-loop validation are included.

* **Leaky productivity**: Saved time only turns into revenue if it is directly tied to billing more, serving more clients, or removing concrete costs.