Key Takeaways

• ChatGPT won't replace your job anytime soon. But it can make it a little bit easier.

• With its impressive functions, the buzzy AI chatbot could give some workers a "productivity boost."

• Insider compiled a list of seven ways workers can use the AI tool to help do their jobs.

OpenAI's ChatGPT and similar AI tools may not replace jobs anytime soon. But they can help workers across many industries – from tech to media – do their jobs better and more quickly.

"It's almost like a bit of a productivity boost that some of these occupations might get," Anu Madgavkar, a partner at economic research firm McKinsey Global Institute, told Insider.

The buzzy conversational chatbot – which attracted one million users soon after its launch last November – has been used to generate real estate advice, provide tips on how to start a business, and even write music in the style of individual artists, all with varying levels of success.

Sam Altman, the CEO of the firm behind ChatGPT, would agree, as he previously said that "generative text is something we all need to adapt to."

"We adapted to calculators and changed what we tested for in math class, I imagine," Altman said during an interview with StrictlyVC in January. "This is a more extreme version of that, no doubt, but also the benefits of it are more extreme, as well."

Use it as a Google alternative for research

ChatGPT can be used as an alternative to Google. LanaStock/Getty Images

How many times a day do you Google something at work? With ChatGPT, that may become less common.

In fact, the search-engine giant is reportedly worried that you'll eventually put your queries into ChatGPT instead. The company issued a "code red" over the bot's potential threat to its search business.

"Google may be only a year or two away from total disruption," Gmail creator Paul Buchheit tweeted on Wednesday, adding that AI will be able to "instantly do what would take many minutes for a human" to do using a search engine like Google.

While ChatGPT isn't always accurate — its knowledge only goes to 2021 — it can analyze data from millions of websites to try and answer whatever question it receives. Plus, it gets smarter the more it's used.

Rather than providing users a series of links to sift through — many of which are high up on the page simply due to advertising spend — ChatGPT provides the user with a quick answer. And if the answer is too complicated, ChatGPT can explain it in simpler terms if you ask it to.

Use it to write essays, speeches, cover letters, songs, and employee evaluations

ChatGPT can help users improve their writing. iStock/Getty Images

As many students with essay assignments have already realized, ChatGPT can be quite useful as a writing tool.

While some teachers are trying to crack down on AI's use, UPenn professor Ethan Mollick recently told NPR that he's requiring his students to use ChatGPT.

Use it to analyze vast amounts of data

ChatGPT can be used to help analyze data with speed. Mr. Whiskey/Shutterstock

Many roles involve various forms of data analysis, and ChatGPT can process a lot of information quickly.

"Analyzing and interpreting vast amounts of language-based data and information is a skill that you'd expect generative AI technologies to ramp up on," Madgavkar told Insider.

"If you're an academic, it's quite nice that you don't have to do statistical analysis by hand," Benedikt Frey said. "You can produce a lot of more stuff."

It could also help those trying to use data to make investment decisions, Muro, a senior fellow at the Brooking Institute, previously told Insider.

"AI can identify trends in the market, highlight what investments in a portfolio are doing better and worse, communicate all that, and then use various other forms of data by, say, a financial company to forecast a better investment mix," he said.

Use it for scheduling tasks, planning, and time management

ChatGPT can help manage your work schedule. Chinnapong/Getty Images

Getting your busy work schedule organized may be time-consuming — but ChatGPT and other forms of AI can help make the process go a little bit smoother.

"Scheduling work and activities seems a perfect AI problem," the study said.

Some users have tried this out with promising results. Micah, a Youtuber that makes videos exploring AI, posted a video demonstrating how he used ChatGPT to automate his work scheduling.

After he asked ChatGPT to create a daily work schedule that includes tasks like finishing a performance report and scheduling a meeting with his boss, the chatbot was able to spit out an hour-by-hour breakdown of a potential schedule in a matter of seconds.

He then asked ChatGPT to reprioritize certain tasks, but ChatGPT suggested that "it may not be feasible" to do so given his time constraints.

"This is one of the underrated things ChatGPT can do," Micah said.

Turn it into a coding assistant

ChatGPT can help programmers identify bugs and write code. Maskot/Getty Images

Oded Netzer, a Columbia Business School professor, thinks AI will help coders rather than replace them.

"In terms of jobs, I think it's primarily an enhancer than full replacement of jobs," Netzer told CBS MoneyWatch. "Coding and programming is a good example of that. It actually can write code quite well."

Specifically, ChatGPT is capable of quickly generating lines of code to resolve certain coding problems. One TikTok user, @asap_blockie, asked ChatGPT to identify the error in some code he was working on as part of his job

When work isn't going great: Use it to apply for a new job or to negotiate a raise

ChatGPT can provide emotional comfort and help get you paid more. vgajic/Getty Images

Finally, if you're not happy at your job, ChatGPT may be able to offer some support. People are using it to craft their resumes and cover letters as they undergo their job searches.

"It will make you a cover letter so you don't have to waste your time anymore," Jonathan Javier, CEO of the career consulting company Consulting

If you're fairly happy at work but feel like you're underpaid, ChatGPT might even be able to help you get a raise. Insider's Sarah Jackson asked ChatGPT for advice to help her prepare for a theoretical salary negotiation, and two career coaches told her she'd probably be able to get a raise if she followed the AI's script.