AI Anxiety Is Quietly Reshaping the Workplace

By George Waggott, founder and Roberto Fonseca-Velazquez, law student

George Waggott Law

Walk into a meeting today and something feels different. Fewer people speak up. Notes are being “taken” by AI. Someone pauses, glances down, and checks a chatbot before offering an idea. The technology is subtle, but the tension is not.

A growing body of research suggests many workers are experiencing what is now being called “AI anxiety”, which is an uneasy mix of fear, dependence, skepticism, and quiet self-doubt. As artificial intelligence becomes embedded in everyday tasks, AI tools are changing not just how work gets done, but how people feel about their own competence and value.

One of the most common fears is skill erosion. Workers worry that they are losing abilities they once relied on, such as writing, problem-solving, and analysis, because AI tools are now doing parts of that thinking for them. Some report that they already struggle with tasks that used to come naturally. The concern is not just about productivity; it’s also about identity. When your job has always been proof of what you know how to do, outsourcing parts of it can feel unsettling.

At the same time, workplaces are quietly splitting into camps. A small but growing group openly relies on AI tools and new technologies and work methods to do much of their work. Others use the same tools but hide it, worried that they will be judged as lazy or less capable. That judgment is real: many workers admit they side-eye colleagues who lean on AI, even while doing the same thing themselves. The result is a strange mix of secrecy, hypocrisy, and silence — not exactly the foundation of healthy collaboration.

Trust is another fault line. Despite the hype, many employees remain unconvinced that AI tool and related “new strategies are sustainable or well thought through. Some see AI as a bubble that could burst. Others worry it’s a shortcut to job loss rather than job enhancement. These fears coexist with very real efforts to adapt: workers are upskilling, enrolling in courses, and trying to future-proof their careers, often without clear guidance from their employers.

Perhaps most surprising is how personal AI use has become. Some workers report bonding with their tools, preferring interaction with AI over colleagues, especially in remote environments. For a subset of employees, AI tools have become a source of emotional support, stress relief, or companionship. While this may sound extreme, it points to a deeper issue: people are turning to machines to meet needs that workplaces no longer reliably fulfill, including their desire that their work and co-workers provide them with connection, feedback, and reassurance.

Younger workers, particularly Gen Z, experience this tension acutely. Many are highly fluent in the uses and benefits of AI tools, and deeply reliant on them. At the same time, many of the same “AI experts” are simultaneously worried that constant use is dulling their thinking. In other words, comfort and concern are happening at the same time.

For employers, the message is clear: the widespread adoption of AI tools is not just a technical rollout. Instead, growing and pervasive use of AI is leading to a workplace cultural change. Left unmanaged, these developments can quietly undermine worker confidence, trust, and engagement. But handled thoughtfully, AI tools and the changes which they are bringing about can lead to massive impacts and powerful team support.

The result is the need to focus on several areas, including the following: 1) being explicit about when and how AI should be used, 2) investing in digital literacy rather than assuming it, and 3), perhaps most crucially, doubling down on the human side of work. Conversations, mentorship, psychological safety, and shared learning matter more, not less, in an AI-enabled workplace.

AI anxiety is not necessarily a sign of resistance to progress. Instead, genuine human concerns about the widespread use of AI tools are quite likely a signal that people are trying to adapt faster than their workplaces are helping them do it.

For more information about George Waggott Law, please see: www.georgewaggott.com, or contact: george@georgewaggott.com