Effectiveness of LLM-based AI Assistance for small business productivity

We investigate the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) assistance, specifically on productivity for small business users performing common digital productivity tasks. Through an experimental design with 320 participants, we examined the effects of AI on task completion, time taken, and self-reported satisfaction with the output across various productivity tasks related to sales, customer support, and project management. Results indicate that AI significantly increased productivity for text-heavy tasks involving reading and writing, leading to higher likelihoods to complete the task, faster completion times and higher user satisfaction. Although AI was not helpful for other tasks, participants appeared to grasp this and used AI more in tasks for which it was helpful. Additionally, we found evidence for a "level playing field" effect, where less proficient users experienced greater benefits from AI in terms of task completion. These findings suggest small businesses should utilize AI assistance, especially for their less experienced employees.