# Behind the Data on AI at Work, with Dr. Nick Hallman

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Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/austin-tech-connect/behind-the-data-on-ai-at-work-with-dr-nick-hallman.md
Podcast: [Austin Tech Connect: The Podcast For The Austin Technology Ecosystem, Business Leaders, and Tech Entrepreneurs!](https://stenobird.com/podcast/austin-tech-connect)
Published: 2026-04-10T12:54:00+00:00
Episode link: https://a7b1cb29-8eb2-4801-9ccb-e0eb899497ab.libsyn.com/behind-the-data-on-ai-at-work-with-dr-nick-hallman
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Duration seconds: 2061

## Resource

In this episode of Austin Tech Connect , Thom Singer sits down with Dr. Nick Hallman, professor at The University of Texas at Austin, to talk about one of the biggest business questions of the moment, how companies are actually using AI, and whether they are measuring success the right way. Drawing on research conducted with KPMG, Dr. Hallman shares what his team learned from studying real workplace interactions with large language models over time. What makes this conversation especially interesting is that the study did not just look at whether employees were using AI. It looked deeper. Dr. Hallman and his colleagues were able to examine prompts, responses, and patterns of use across months of professional activity. That gave them a far richer picture of what productive AI adoption really looks like, and what many organizations may be missing when they focus only on usage volume. One of the biggest surprises? Most AI use was not especially advanced. Dr. Hallman explains that roughly 90 percent of the activity they observed was centered on writing help, things like cleaning up emails or improving wording. Useful, yes. Transformational, not really. The more sophisticated uses involved clearly defined tasks such as analysis, coding, and creating tangible work product. Those higher value outcomes tended to come when users were specific about what they wanted and what a successful output should look like. Another unexpected finding was that senior people often used AI more effectively than junior employees. Dr. Hallman suggests that may be because strong AI use mirrors strong delegation. Leaders who know how to clearly assign work to people are often better at directing an LLM. That insight challenges the assumption that younger workers will automatically be the most adva…

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