How AI will destroy intelligence

How AI will destroy intelligence

19 October 2025

I was out walking, pondering a topic for today, when I came across an article that stopped me in my tracks: “Are we living in a golden age of stupidity?” by The Guardian, published on 18 October 2025.

The author warns that as we rely more on digital tools — especially artificial intelligence — we are quietly surrendering the very challenges that keep our brains sharp. The piece cites research showing that people using AI to write or reason exhibit less brain activity than those who think and compose on their own.

I am, and will remain, an admirer and active user of AI. Yet I cannot ignore the growing concern about its effects on our mental lives.

Many argue that the benefits of AI outweigh its risks. But that misses a crucial point: AI removes the friction our minds need to grow. A brain that faces no challenge becomes weaker over time.

Think about it. The calculator and the smartphone have already changed us. Our arithmetic isn’t what it used to be; our concentration has faded. Now, AI threatens to automate reasoning itself — the very act of thinking.

If you follow AI, follow neuroscience too. Observe what this offloading does to your memory, your focus, your creativity. And then ask yourself:

Will we become better — or merely more efficient, yet mentally poorer?

AI may be a brilliant tool, but it can also be a mental anesthetic. Let’s use it wisely — without giving up the one thing that makes us human: the effort to think for ourselves.

Miguel Goede