Experts warn digital convenience may be eroding human intelligence

Experts warn digital convenience may be eroding human intelligence
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Experts are warning that society’s growing dependence on artificial intelligence (AI) and effortless digital tools could be diminishing human attention, memory, and critical-thinking abilities.

According to a Guardian report, researchers fear that technology designed to make life easier may also be making people less capable of independent thought.

At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, research scientist Nataliya Kosmyna conducted an experiment comparing how people wrote essays unaided, with a search engine, or using ChatGPT. Brain scans showed that those using ChatGPT exhibited weaker connectivity in regions linked to attention and creativity and struggled to recall what they had written afterward.

Other findings cited include a study by the Centre for Strategic Corporate Foresight and Sustainability showing a correlation between frequent generative-AI use and lower critical-thinking scores. Educators also report that students increasingly rely on AI to complete assignments without fully understanding the material.

Globally, academic data appear to support this trend: the reading, maths, and science scores of 15-year-olds across OECD countries peaked in 2012, and average IQ gains observed over the last century have begun to reverse.

Researchers describe today’s world as a “stupidogenic society” — one that fosters intellectual decline much like an “obesogenic society” encourages unhealthy weight gain. While technology has historically expanded access to knowledge, experts say many of today’s tools replace effort rather than enhance thought.

Kosmyna and other educators stress that the issue lies not in technology itself but in its uncritical use. They warn that overreliance on AI risks weakening essential cognitive skills, making people more vulnerable to misinformation and manipulation. As the Guardian article concludes, the challenge of the AI era may not be machines becoming too smart — but humans becoming too dependent.