The AI productivity boom has bosses asking what’s in it for employees

Good morning! Fortune reporter Emma Burleigh here, filling in for Kristin.

AI is helping employees get more done in less time.

As companies race to capitalize on those efficiency gains, some executives are rethinking how they measure the technology’s success—and what it should ultimately deliver for their businesses and workers.

From unlocking creativity and innovation to protecting employees’ brain health, leaders are taking a broader view of AI’s impact on the workplace.

The stakes are growing: U.S. employees who frequently use AI report higher burnout rates than those who don’t, according to 2026 data from Quantum Workplace .

For Athina Kanioura, global chief strategy and transformation officer and CEO of PepsiCo Latin America, rethinking AI’s value means challenging the pressure to prove immediate financial returns.

Speaking with panelists from Indeed, Dropbox , and Bristol Myers Squibb at the Fortune Most Powerful Women conference last week, Kanioura argued that requiring a business case for every AI application risks overlooking benefits that are harder to quantify.

She described the relentless pursuit of ROI as “death by a thousand cuts.” At Indeed, AI is already delivering measurable productivity gains, helping software engineers write 50% more code and saving employees six hours a week, according to chief revenue officer Maggie Hulce.

The company is looking to put that newfound time toward creative thinking and innovation, giving employees more opportunities to do work they enjoy.

“We’re moving faster, we can innovate faster, we can invent faster, we can do fun work more and more,” said Hulce.

Other leaders are exploring how to keep employees mentally sharp.

Dropbox chief people officer Melanie Rosenwasser said the $8 billion cloud company is examining the risk of “cognitive atrophy” as workers increasingly outsource their thinking to AI.

Dropbox has introduced memory exercises, attention-span training, and puzzles.

It also experimented with device-free “analog” off-sites and brought in a breathwork specialist for its executive team.