By Sharon Stewart |
March 7, 2025
Are we outsourcing too much of our thinking? The risk of relying on AI
Sharon Stewart, Consultant and Records Management expert here at Metataxis, shares her compelling concerns regarding the younger generations coming through the workplace – who seem to be heavily relying on AI and not developing the skills we have learnt, such as critical thinking, as part of our roles in the information management space.
Read on:
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionising the way we work, learn, and interact with information. From automating tedious tasks to providing instant answers, AI is undeniably making life easier. But as we lean more on AI, there’s a nagging question: Are we outsourcing too much of our thinking?
If AI is doing the heavy lifting—summarising reports, drafting emails, analysing data—what happens to our own ability to think critically, problem-solve, and develop expertise? Will future generations, who enter the workforce with AI as their default tool, ever fully develop these skills in the first place?
This isn’t just an abstract concern. We’ve seen similar patterns before. Take GPS: it’s made navigation effortless, but how many of us can still read a map or give directions without our phones? Or calculators—does relying on them from a young age weaken mental arithmetic? Now, AI threatens to do the same for writing, research, decision-making, and even creative thinking.
The erosion of deep work
One of the biggest risks is that AI could diminish our ability to focus deeply. Tools like ChatGPT can draft ideas instantly, which is great—but does it make us less patient with the slow, difficult process of forming our own thoughts? Writing and thinking are intertwined; when we let AI handle too much, are we skipping the mental workout that strengthens our ability to reason?
In workplaces, junior employees traditionally built expertise by wrestling with problems—figuring out how to structure a report, analyse data, or craft an argument. But if they rely on AI for these tasks too soon, will they ever develop the underlying competence? Will we end up with a generation of professionals who can execute AI-generated work but struggle when forced to think beyond the algorithm?
The “Google Effect” on steroids
Psychologists have long studied the Google Effect—our tendency to forget information we know we can quickly look up. AI is like Google on steroids: it doesn’t just retrieve facts, it interprets, synthesises, and even suggests what we should think. If we get used to taking AI’s responses at face value, do we stop questioning, analysing, and learning?
And then there’s bias. AI systems are trained on existing human knowledge, including its flaws. If we become passive consumers of AI-generated insights, we risk amplifying errors, false assumptions, and biases without realising it.
The other side: Could AI actually make us smarter?
On the flip side, AI doesn’t just replace thinking—it can augment it. Just as calculators freed us to focus on higher-order math, AI could let us spend less time on grunt work and more on strategy, creativity, and innovation. It can help us learn faster, expose us to new ideas, and allow us to push our thinking further.
The key is how we use AI. If we treat it as a crutch, our skills will atrophy. If we treat it as a tool—one that supports but doesn’t replace critical thinking—it could actually make us more effective.
Should we be worried about AI dependency?
It depends on whether we actively resist the temptation to let AI do all the thinking for us. The risk isn’t that AI exists, but that we stop questioning, practicing, and developing skills because of it.
If we want to avoid a future where people struggle to think independently, we need to be intentional. That means:
- Encouraging deep work and problem-solving, even when AI could do it faster.
- Training younger generations to use AI as a thought partner, not an answer machine.
- Prioritising skills like reasoning, creativity, and judgment—things AI can assist with but not replace.
The question is: how do we make sure AI makes us better thinkers, not just faster clickers?
What do you think—are we at risk of losing key skills, or will AI ultimately make us more intelligent?
