Executives Are Twice As Likely As Workers To Trust AI Over Their Own Judgment, Study Shows

Executives are twice as likely as employees to trust artificial intelligence over their own judgment, while workers are more skeptical about the technology’s impact on their careers and society, according to a new study.

The Charter AI Pulse study found that senior leaders were 2.5 times more likely than workers to trust AI-generated outputs and more than twice as likely to favor AI over advice from a knowledgeable colleague.

Researchers examined not only how frequently employees use AI but also whether the technology improves their working lives, how managers support its adoption and what happens when workers feel uncomfortable acknowledging their reliance on it.

One of the clearest differences emerged in attitudes toward AI’s future. While 85% of executives expressed at least some optimism about its impact on their organizations, only 56% of employees shared that view.

The gap was also evident in broader concerns about the technology. About 41% of employees were pessimistic about AI’s impact on society, compared with 17% of executives. The study found that 36% of AI users had concealed their use of the technology from a manager, colleague or client.

The most common reason was fear of being perceived as incompetent, suggesting that some workers remain uncomfortable admitting they need technological assistance to complete their assignments.

Managers were 1.6 times more likely than other workers to conceal their AI use, despite often being responsible for encouraging employees to adopt the technology.

Researchers also identified a relationship between secrecy and burnout. Among the factors they examined, hiding AI use was the strongest predictor of increased burnout risk. The research establishes an association rather than proving that concealing AI use directly causes burnout.

Another finding involved the difference between what managers believe they are doing to support AI adoption and what their employees actually experience. Managers were twice as likely to report taking recommended steps to help their teams as employees were to recall receiving that support.

That difference matters because 11 of the 14 factors most strongly associated with employees benefiting from AI were linked to management practices, including giving workers greater influence over how the technology fits into their jobs.

Despite growing interest in workplace AI, the benefits reported by users varied considerably. Some 42.7% of AI users said the technology had made their work and lives at least somewhat better. However, only 10.5% reported a substantial improvement, which researchers classified as thriving.

Frequency of use was associated with better outcomes. Workers using AI more than once a day were twice as likely to report benefits as those using it weekly.

The study found that employees’ involvement in decisions about how to use AI was more closely associated with positive outcomes than adopting sophisticated tools, such as autonomous AI agents.

Training also played an important role. Respondents rated hands-on instruction as the most useful resource for learning to work with AI, yet fewer than 40% said they received it.

Hands-on training was valued 2.3 times more highly than simply being given time to experiment with the technology.

Formal workplace policies appeared less helpful to users. Just 50.5% of employers provided AI policies or guidelines, which researchers identified as among the least useful resources for improving employees’ experience with the tools.