The XChange

AI has become an incredibly contentious and divisive topic, generally putting people into camps: pro-AI or anti-AI, much like the longstanding divide between those who are for or against guns.

Guns can take lives, and they also can save lives. Similarly, AI can offer tremendous benefits and assist with breakthroughs in science, mathematics, and even our personal lives. All of which can benefit humanity and society. On the flip side, AI can also cause irreversible harm to humanity and society. One of the potential harms is its contribution to the erosion of human intellect and critical thinking.

“AI is making people dumber” is a common cry you will read and hear echoing across the varied halls of society. Honestly, generative AI hasn't been accessible to the general public long enough for us to place the sole blame for declining cognitive abilities on it.

AI is only part of the problem. It is simply the newest addition to a long list of issues we have faced when it comes to developing and maintaining intellectual ability. Long before AI, we had a struggling education system, along with a host of other social issues that can negatively affect how people learn, think, and reason. It's important that we don't take our eyes off those other issues and focus solely on the newest boogeyman: AI. Doing so will only perpetuate the issue.

Now, AI can make us lazy and, in some circumstances, less capable of thinking for ourselves. I'm not arguing against that fact. But at the same time, if used effectively, AI can make individuals much more intelligent; it can inspire them and show them potential and possibilities that they may have never thought of, and yes, my dear artists, AI can even make individuals more creative.

But sadly, the issue revolves around education. In most cases, educators and individuals aren't going to be given the proper training or knowledge to use AI as a tool for developing their intellect or creativity. Instead, AI will likely be sold primarily as a tool that helps people get things done faster.

And that distinction matters.

If we teach people to use AI simply as a shortcut, we shouldn't be surprised when they become dependent on the shortcut. But if we teach people how to use AI to question, explore, analyze, create, and learn, we may be able to use the technology to strengthen the very cognitive abilities we fear it could diminish.

Lastly, this one is for my educators and lovers of knowledge. The harsh reality is that most people don't want to learn about things that they don't have an interest in or need to learn in order to survive. Most people just don't have a wild thirst for knowledge. So, I think that some of the questions that we have to ask are:

• How do we improve learning culture in our various societies?

• How do we increase mental capabilities such as critical thinking, logic, systems thinking, reasoning, and problem-solving in a world where a lot of this can be offloaded to an AI?

• And perhaps most importantly: How can AI become part of the solution to a problem that “it” has also helped contribute to?

Those questions could ultimately be more important than whether you are "pro-AI" or "anti-AI."