Our latest research suggests the importance of how tasks are divided and carried out alongside access to AI tools. These new tasks outside their typical job descriptions become a regular part of how workers use AI. If those activities become regular responsibilities, jobs could broaden even while their titles stay the same.

Analyzing more than 1.5 million work-related ChatGPT messages from April through July 2026, we find evidence that some cross-occupation AI use is recurring. Among roughly 6,200 workers observed consistently, previously used cross-occupation tasks increased from 13.1% of occupation-specific AI activity in April to 25.9% in July.

Workers prompt AI differently for tasks inside and outside their usual roles. When asking about tasks outside their occupation, they write shorter prompts on average. They are also less likely to ask for explanations, how-to guidance, a specific response format, or advice. At the same time, workers are more likely to provide examples or background when asking AI for help outside their occupations.

Recurrence varies by type of work. Workers returned the following month to some cross-occupation tasks at relatively high rates: discussing goods or services with customers: 54%; advertising or promotional writing: 44%; creating marketing materials: 37%. The average next-month return rate across cross-occupation tasks was 18.5%.