Employees Are Secretly Using AI at Work. Here Are 3 Ways Leaders Can Encourage More Transparent Use.

Artificial intelligence is now firmly embedded in how teams get work done. As companies invest more time and resources into bringing AI to the center of their business, their focus needs to shift beyond integrating tools to understanding how employees are actually using them.

Employees are no longer as hesitant about AI as they once were. Many now see it not as a replacement, but as a way to enhance and uplevel their work. In fact, a majority of employees are using AI at work voluntarily — even when their company doesn’t mandate it.

While employees’ curiosity about AI is peaking, many are often quiet about their use of it. According to Slingshot‘s Digital Work Trends Report, nearly half of employees (45%) do not disclose their AI use at work. Many employers (47%) often assume this silence is driven by job security concerns, but only 24% of employees say that’s the case. Instead, workers are concerned that their AI use will be perceived as cutting corners (34%) or they’re in fear of being judged (27%).

This is giving rise to the quiet AI workforce — employees who are actively using AI to be more productive and effective, but doing so under the radar. This quiet behavior is not as resistance to AI, but a signal that organizations haven’t yet created the structure employees need to use AI openly and to its full potential.

At Infragistics, AI is integrated into teams’ daily workflows and decision-making through our data-driven work management platform, Slingshot. Because it’s part of everyday work, employees use AI confidently and transparently — without fear it will be perceived as cutting corners or being judged. This empowers teams to work more efficiently, make better decisions and accelerate results.

Here’s how companies can encourage more transparent use of AI and unlock even more of its potential across its teams.

1. Creating an AI-driven culture is just as important as adopting new tools

Many companies are eager to adopt new AI tools as capabilities advance and use cases expand. But AI adoption is more than integrating tools into the tech stack — it requires bringing AI into company culture and everyday processes.

A large part of creating that culture is AI training and education. This should be part of every employee’s onboarding checklist and required training, just like security or compliance. Companies should also support ongoing learning through experimentation and innovation — something 66% of employees say they’re interested in.

Employees need to know not only how to use AI tools, but also understand AI’s larger purpose in the organization, goals for the technology and the ways teams are expected to use it. This information should come directly from leaders. Consistent communication around AI’s role and impact will create alignment, reduce any fears and encourage experimentation.

2. Ensure company policies keep up with employees

Employees are moving faster than company policy. AI adoption in the workplace isn’t being driven by mandates from the top. Instead, it’s being pulled forward by employees themselves — often well ahead of formal company guidance. Eighty-seven percent (87%) of employees say they’re using AI voluntarily, even though only 28% of companies require it.

Without clear rules around usage and compliance, it’s up to employees to decide what’s ethical, what’s secure and what AI should be used for. And with no expectations to disclose how or when AI is used, employees may continue to keep their use silent.

Companies must establish clear guidelines about responsible AI use. This should include defining which tools are approved, what data can and cannot be shared and when AI-generated work should be disclosed. With this governance in place, employees can still experiment and openly use AI — and companies can ensure it’s done in an ethical and secure way.

3. Lead by example to elevate AI use

While much of the conversation around AI at work focuses on individual productivity and automating admin tasks, a different story is emerging at the leadership level. Managers and senior leaders are already moving beyond surface-level use and applying AI in ways that directly shape decisions.

According to the Digital Work Trends Report, most employees rely on AI to check or improve their work (54%) or draft emails and other written content (52%). These use cases drive efficiency, but they’re largely task-oriented. Company leaders, on the other hand, are applying AI more strategically, using it to analyze business and team data (56%), conduct research (52%) and manage team priorities (47%).

This gap doesn’t necessarily mean employees are misusing AI. It highlights how quickly AI is becoming part of employees’ everyday workflows — and that there’s room for them to unlock more of its potential, to the effect of what their leaders are doing.

To close this gap, companies should share use cases across the organization to showcase what’s possible in the workplace with AI, offer role-specific training that goes beyond basic productivity tasks and create clear expectations that normalize transparent AI use across all levels of the organization.

Employers who want real ROI from AI must focus less on rolling out new tools and more on creating the structure, visibility and trust that allow AI to scale responsibly. When AI use is normalized and openly discussed, it stops being a secret and becomes a shared driver of growth.