Stage 4: tested with real people.
The rule that placed itA randomized trial or field study has tested it with real people doing the task.
The evidenceIn a field study of 5,179 customer-support agents, an AI chat assistant raised issues resolved per hour by 14% on average, with the biggest gains for novice and low-skilled agents. Brynjolfsson, Li and Raymond, Generative AI at Work (NBER w31161; Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2025), Nov 2023.
A stage says how far the evidence has got. It is not a rating of the AI and not advice.
- 1ClaimedNo evidence yet
- 2LaunchedNo evidence yet
- 3Independently testedNo evidence yet
- 4Tested with real peoplePlaced here
- 5Regulator-clearedNo approval process exists
- 6Widely used with a verified recordNo evidence yet
Everything we found.
In ladder order, newest first within each kind. Makers' own claims are labeled as theirs.
Tested with real people
- Field study, 5,179 customer-support agents
In a field study of 5,179 customer-support agents, an AI chat assistant raised issues resolved per hour by 14% on average, with the biggest gains for novice and low-skilled agents.
“Access to the tool increases productivity, as measured by issues resolved per hour, by 14% on average”
Rules and approvals
- EU · Rule · European Union (AI Act)
The EU AI Act requires AI systems that deal directly with people to be built so people are told they are talking to an AI, unless that is obvious.
EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689), Article 50, AI Act Service Desk, European Commission · Jul 27, 2026
- US · Rule · Federal Communications Commission
The FCC ruled that calls made with AI-generated voices are 'artificial' under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the US law on robocalls.
FCC Declaratory Ruling FCC 24-17 · Feb 8, 2024
- US · Rule · Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
The CFPB warned banks not to make chatbots their main customer-service channel when the chatbot clearly cannot meet customers' needs.
“A poorly deployed chatbot can lead to customer frustration, reduced trust, and even violations of the law.”
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau · Jun 6, 2023
Not found in our sources yet: what the makers claim; what has launched; what independent tests found; how many people use it. No regulator approves AI for this task, so the approval step doesn't apply.
Can AI do these yet?
Make scientific discoveries
Stage 3 of 6Independently tested
METR: AI-era maths results up somewhat; no clear algorithm speed-up
Tell me what's in the news
Stage 3 of 6Independently tested
Almost half of AI assistants' news answers had a significant issue
Read and understand a long document
Stage 3 of 6Independently tested
2024 book test: GPT-4o 55.8% on claims people found easy