In an age where information overload is the norm, could artificial intelligence be the key to unlocking superhuman productivity? A new wave of AI-powered apps is making bold promises, from turbocharging your note-taking to automating your schedule. But are these tools game-changers or just the latest shiny distractions?
The Rise of AI Productivity Assistants
Leading the charge is NotebookLM, an AI note-taking tool developed by Google Labs in collaboration with author Steven Johnson. It uses large language models to organize, summarize, and draw insights from your notes and research materials. Johnson sees it as “a tool for understanding things” that can act as an external memory aid.
“It’s incredibly good at just being like: ‘Oh yeah, 15 years ago you read that article about ant colonies,'” says Johnson of his “everything notebook” containing decades of reading notes and book drafts. By resurfacing connections and sparking ideas, NotebookLM promises to facilitate the creative process itself.
Building a Second Brain
The concept of using technology as a “second brain” is a common refrain among productivity enthusiasts. Robbie O’Connor of Notion, an all-in-one workspace tool, compares it to how Google Maps turbocharged our navigational abilities. “It gave you a lot more power, a lot more freedom, a lot more reliability,” he explains.
Notion offers a dizzying array of templates for everything from to-do lists to project planning, as well as collaborative features for teams. Another app, Capacities, takes a novel approach by breaking free from traditional file-and-folder structures. It organizes notes as interconnected “objects” that theoretically become more useful over time. But as I discovered while testing these tools, building a second brain requires serious commitment and discipline.
The Pitfalls of Productivity Tech
“Many people fall in this productivity trap that they need to have crazy setups and they need to do more stuff, and in the end they basically procrastinate and then they don’t get anything done,” cautions Capacities co-founder Steffen Bleher. It’s a sentiment echoed by Anna Gurun of HSM Advisory: “The big challenge is confusing productivity with busyness. If you’re not clear in the outcomes you want to reach then you’re not going to be able to use the tool effectively.”
No scheduling tool can create more hours in the day, or force me to actually do the work.
I encountered this firsthand while testing Reclaim.ai, a smart calendar tool. Despite its slick features like automatically scheduling focus time for my novel-writing aspirations, I quickly realized I had been overly ambitious. As powerful as these tools may be, they can’t solve deeper issues like poor sleep or burnout that impact productivity.
The Future: AI Agents and Bots
The next frontier is AI “agents” that can autonomously complete tasks on your behalf. Anthropic demoed a model that can fill out web forms, while Google is reportedly developing an agent that could book flights or make purchases. In the productivity realm, Superhuman email app founder Rahul Vohra envisions AI that can fully write and send emails for you.
“You can imagine an AI agent that triages on your behalf, that schedules on your behalf,” says Vohra. In the not-too-distant future, setting up a meeting could be as simple as having your bot negotiate with the other party’s bot.
The Bottom Line
So are AI productivity tools worth the hype? The current crop, while intriguing, still have limitations. They can streamline busywork but can’t address the emotional factors and cloudy objectives that often undermine productivity. And they require an upfront time investment that may negate their benefits for more casual users.
However, the automated agents on the horizon could be transformative, handling everything from emails to scheduling with minimal human intervention. Until then, it pays to be selective about the tools you adopt. Focus on those that solve specific pain points in your workflow without demanding a complete overhaul of your processes. And remember, no app can be a true substitute for clarity of purpose and good old-fashioned discipline.
