How people are really using Gen AI in 2025
đ https://hbr.org/2025/04/how-people-are-really-using-gen-ai-in-2025
Marc Zao-Sanders revisits a viral article from a year ago on how people use generative AI (Gen AI), highlighting the exponential growth in interest, investment, and adoption. In 2025, Gen AI is more accessible, personalized, and versatileâwith features like custom GPTs, better reasoning abilities, and voice interfaces. This new report draws from thousands of real-world use cases (especially Reddit) to update the top 100 ways people use Gen AI today.
AI use cases are evolving fastâ38 new entries made it into this yearâs top 100 list. A big shift is underway: from technical to emotional and life-oriented uses. The top use case is now Therapy/Companionship, followed by Organizing My Life and Finding Purpose. The dominant trend theme is now Personal and Professional Support, overtaking âTechnical Assistance.â
People are using Gen AI to solve both simple and complex problems. Examples include:
Therapy for emotional support, especially in underserved regions.
Life Organization, like creating cleaning schedules.
Learning, such as using ChatGPT to study data analysis.
Healthy Living, like generating meals based on macro requirements.
Travel Planning, crafting detailed itineraries.
Administrative Help, like successfully disputing fines.
Gen AI isnât just a toolâitâs becoming a self-development companion. Therapy is now the most common use, offering 24/7, judgment-free emotional support. People also use AI to:
Reflect on values
Stay accountable
Reframe problems
Build confidence
Engage in introspective or even spiritual exploration
Major companies (like EY and Microsoft) are integrating Gen AI into employee workflows, empowering workers and enhancing productivity.
Thereâs a lively debate about whether Gen AI helps or hinders our thinking. Some worry about overreliance, especially for students. Others argue that it fosters deeper thinking and creativity by offering a risk-free environment for experimentation and learning. Experts see Gen AI as a cognitive playground where people can refine ideas and grow.
In 2025, users are more sophisticated, they:
Question AIâs political bias
Express privacy concerns
Criticize memory limitations Yet they also show a better understanding of how AI works and how to craft effective prompts. Online opinions range from AI being the greatest invention to seeing it as utterly useless or even dangerous.
Speculation continues. People now want AI to evolve from passive advice-giver to agentic actorâAI that can execute tasks (e.g., cancel a subscription). The safe prediction? AI will continue to growâand so will the ways we use it.