A new survey from CNBC and SurveyMonkey released in Q3 2026 is drawing a sharp line through the American workforce. Three in ten workers now use AI every day on the job. The other seven? Many haven’t touched it at all. And the gap between those two groups is widening fast.
The CNBC/SurveyMonkey Quarterly AI & Jobs Survey found that 21% of workers use AI multiple times a day, 8% once a day, and 34% use it occasionally. But 37% of workers still report never using AI at work. That’s more than one in three people who are watching this transformation happen from the sidelines.
What This Actually Means
This isn’t just a feel-good tech story. The survey reveals something with real financial stakes: workers who use AI daily are the only group that feels net positive about their job security because of AI. Among daily users, 27% say their job feels more secure thanks to AI, compared to 22% who feel less secure. For occasional users and non-users, those numbers flip.
In other words, AI isn’t just reshaping the job market in the abstract. It’s already sorting workers into two tiers: those who’ve integrated it into their daily workflow and feel stronger for it, and those who haven’t, and feel threatened.
The survey also found that one in four AI users (23%) have already redirected a colleague to ask AI before coming to them for help. Daily users do this at a rate of 34%. That’s not a curiosity statistic. That’s a sign of how quickly AI fluency is becoming a baseline professional expectation, not a bonus skill.
For side hustlers and freelancers, the implications are just as direct. If you’re selling your time and expertise, and 35% of small businesses have already meaningfully adopted AI tools according to McKinsey, your clients are starting to ask whether they need you as much as they used to, or whether AI can fill the gap. The freelancers winning right now are the ones making themselves the answer to that question, not the casualty of it.
The Numbers Behind It
A few figures from the survey stand out:
- 37% of workers never use AI at work, even as daily usage climbs to 30%
- 55% of workplaces have no official AI usage policy whatsoever
- 23% of workers have changed or considered changing their target industry because of AI
- 20% are actively considering switching to trade jobs or manual labor professions as an AI-resistant career path
- 35% of respondents believe junior employees should be prohibited from using AI at all
That last one is striking. More than a third of workers want to block newer employees from using the tools that could accelerate their careers. That kind of resistance doesn’t slow AI adoption, it just creates a skills ceiling for the people it claims to protect.
The Bankrate 2025 survey found that 39% of Americans already have a side hustle. Cross that with a workforce where AI fluency is becoming a differentiator, and you get a very clear picture of where income opportunities are concentrating.
The Hustler’s Library Take
The CNBC/SurveyMonkey data confirms what we’ve been saying for a while: AI isn’t going to replace you, but someone who knows how to use AI is going to replace you if you don’t get moving.
The 37% who never use AI at work right now aren’t bad at their jobs. They’re just operating with one hand tied behind their back and assuming the playing field is still level. It isn’t. Daily AI users aren’t just more productive; they feel more secure in their positions. That confidence compounds over time.
The freelance and side hustle angle is where this gets really practical. If 87 million freelancers are projected by 2027, the ones who survive commoditization are those who use AI to do more, faster, and at a higher quality. AI isn’t a threat to your side hustle. It’s the biggest leverage tool you’ve ever had access to, and right now it’s still underused enough that early adopters have a real edge.
The survey also shows that most companies still lack any official AI policy, which means individuals, not HR departments, are setting the pace. That’s rare. Use it.
What You Should Do
The survey gives you a clear roadmap. Here’s how to use it:
- Audit your current AI usage honestly. Are you in the 37% who’ve never used AI at work, or the 21% using it multiple times a day? If you’re somewhere in between, get specific about where you’re leaving time and money on the table.
- Find your primary use case. The survey found that research and information gathering is the top AI use case (56% of users). But daily users go beyond that into drafting, editing, analysis, and client communication. Start with research, then expand from there.
- Don’t wait for your company to build a policy. 55% of workplaces have none. That means you have latitude right now to experiment and build skills before someone tells you exactly how and when you’re allowed to use these tools. Get ahead of it.
- If you’re a freelancer or side hustler, use AI to close the rate gap. If your side hustle isn’t generating consistent income yet, AI-assisted workflows are the fastest way to raise your output per hour. Higher output per hour means either more clients, higher rates, or both. That’s not a theory. That’s arithmetic.
- Pay attention to the industries attracting AI-anxious workers. The survey found healthcare, education, and social assistance (22%) and tech, media, and telecom (23%) are the top destinations for workers considering industry changes due to AI. These are active markets. If you’re thinking about pivoting, these sectors have inbound momentum.
The businesses and operators investing in continuous learning right now are exactly the ones who will have the team (or personal skill set) to take full advantage of this window.
The divide is real. The data is out. The only remaining question is which side of it you’re building from.
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