The Household Impact of Generative AI: Evidence from Internet Browsing Behavior

TL;DR

This study analyzes how generative AI, specifically ChatGPT, influences household time allocation, revealing increased leisure time and productivity gains without reducing productive digital activities, based on detailed browsing data and instrumental variable analysis.

Contribution

It provides empirical evidence that generative AI enhances household productivity and leisure, using innovative browsing data analysis and an IV approach to measure AI adoption effects.

Findings

Generative AI increases leisure browsing time.

Households mainly use ChatGPT for productive non-market tasks.

AI adoption leads to significant productivity gains at home.

Abstract

This paper studies the impact of generative AI on U.S. households' task allocation at home, using detailed Internet browsing data from a large sample of home devices between 2021 and 2024. Leveraging pre-ChatGPT browsing patterns, we measure households' exposure to ChatGPT and use it as an instrument for ChatGPT adoption during the post-release period. Our IV estimates show that adopting generative AI substantially increases leisure browsing on home devices while leaving time spent on productive digital tasks unchanged. To examine mechanisms, we infer the purpose of households' ChatGPT use from surrounding internet activity and find that households primarily employ it for productive non-market tasks. Together, these results suggest that generative AI frees up leisure time by raising the efficiency of productive digital activities. Interpreting these findings through a standard time-allocation model implies economically large productivity gains from generative AI at home.