AI's negative impact on cognitive abilities raises concerns

Contrary to the promise of artificial intelligence enhancing human capabilities, a recent study suggests it may be degrading our cognitive abilities. Researchers from MIT, Oxford, and Carnegie Mellon universities have explored the subtle, yet potentially detrimental, effects of AI on intellectual performance.

The study, likened to the "boiling frog" analogy, involved 1,222 participants who were allowed to use AI to help solve problems. Those who used AI for tasks in mathematics and reading comprehension for about ten minutes performed worse and provided more incorrect answers than those who did not use AI at all.

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Our cognitive abilities seem to rust away from outsourcing our mental machinery to algorithms.

Furthermore, participants who utilized AI showed a greater tendency to abandon challenging tasks more quickly. This suggests that the digital assistance provided by AI can foster a form of intellectual laziness, where individuals are less inclined to persevere through difficulties.

This finding echoes concerns raised in a February 2026 publication by Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu and other MIT researchers. They highlighted a paradox where AI, while potentially improving current decision-making for the already skilled, could erode the long-term incentives for learning. This erosion, they argue, could ultimately lead to a collapse in collectively held knowledge.

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But it can also 'erode the incentives for learning that sustain collective knowledge in the long term'.