The Unthinking Generation

As someone who has the privilege of working in an AI startup, I am deeply impressed by (generative) AI.  I think it's incredible that a little bit of Linear Algebra and billions of dollars of data acquisition allows us to converse intelligently with computers.  But as computers get smarter, we may not even realise how precariously we teeter on the edge of intellectual decline. Humanity stands at a crossroads as the tools and technologies designed to empower us are instead subtly eroding our ability to think critically, deeply, and independently. This phenomenon is not entirely new, but it has accelerated with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and its uncanny ability to make tasks easier than ever before.

Across the globe, literacy rates are stagnating or declining, and the definition of literacy itself is evolving to mean something far less robust. Where once literacy implied deep comprehension and the ability to engage with complex texts, today it often just means functional ability i.e. the capacity to read signs or fill out forms. This shift has left many unable to grapple with nuanced ideas, reducing the populace to passive recipients of oversimplified narratives.

Also, the digital ecosystem today rewards brevity. Social media platforms, with their character limits and algorithms designed to keep us scrolling, have birthed a culture of consumption that thrives on short-form content. Viral tweets, bite-sized videos, and clickbait headlines dominate our screens, training our brains to expect instant gratification. Our attention spans, once able to sustain prolonged focus, have withered under the onslaught of endless notifications and hyper-targeted advertisements. The result? A unoriginal society increasingly unwilling or unable to engage with complex issues that require time, patience, and critical thought.

And the most troubling of all is how AI has emerged as the ultimate enabler of intellectual outsourcing. The general consensus is why struggle to write a thoughtful email, analyse a dataset, or craft an original idea when an AI tool can do it for you in seconds? While these technologies offer undeniable benefits, they come at a steep cost. We have grown complacent, relying on algorithms to filter our news, generate our creative output, and even make decisions for us. The more we delegate our mental labor to machines, the less we exercise our cognitive muscles. 

For the first time in human history, the next generation is projected to be worse off than the current one. Part of the reason is that we’ve outsourced our thinking. This poses the risk of diminishing our cognitive engagement. We are slowly losing the ability to come up with new ideas or think of solutions to problems altogether. If this current state keeps proliferating, we might soon reach a point where humans humbly wait for an algorithm to approve what to do and how to think.

The cumulative effect of these trends is a society that not only look and sound the same but one that is at risk of becoming intellectually inert. By consuming superficial content, we confine ourselves to echo chambers that reinforce our biases rather than challenge them. Individuality and originality, i.e. the hallmarks of human creativity and innovation, are being sacrificed on the altar of convenience and conformity. We’re not just outsourcing tasks to AI; we’re outsourcing our very ability to think.

This intellectual atrophy is dangerous. A populace that cannot think critically is easily manipulated, swayed by disinformation, and ill-equipped to solve the complex problems facing our world. Without intervention, we risk becoming passive consumers rather than active participants in shaping our collective future.

A Call to Preserve Human Intelligence

But it’s not all doom and gloom. While technology is undoubtedly a double-edged sword, it can also be wielded to preserve and enhance human intelligence, if we approach it with focus, effort, and discipline. 

So, this blog, Actual Intelligence, is a space dedicated to curating content that challenges the mind and nourishes the intellect. Through thoughtful articles, recommended readings, and actionable strategies, I aim to inspire a movement to reclaim our cognitive sovereignty. Together, we can cultivate habits that prioritise depth over superficiality, originality over conformity, and critical thought over passive consumption.

The age of AI is not inherently a threat, but it does demand vigilance. Let us rise to the challenge and make sure that humanity’s most precious asset, our ability to think, remains intact and thriving for generations to come.

Let’s not let the machines do all the thinking for us. It’s time to take back control.

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Sonam Pelden