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When we lose our ability to write, we lose our ability to think. That’s the risk posed by generative AI’s proficiency in creating written content that mirrors the creativity of the human mind. In a recent blog post, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates revealed some of his concerns around the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence. Among them were fears around job displacement and mis/disinformation, and near the bottom of the list was one that—although not as headline stealing—was equally as unsettling: an erosion of our ability to express ideas through words—to exercise that most fundamental form of communication that has developed over centuries to fuel our evolution and help create the technology we now enjoy. Ironic that it could be that same technology that weakens this very skill.
Algorithms can now produce everything from cover letters to product reviews to news stories. The utility of this technology will lead to widespread adoption and usage, which in turn will lead to people writing less—because now they don’t have to. Fast forward ten (maybe five) years and words as a form of expression may be largely limited to ChatGPT prompts rather than expressing original ideas. Programs will now do what resembles that, but isn’t. This may weaken our ability to articulate complex, nuanced thoughts through words and therefore make our communications clumsy and coarse.
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Use it or lose it. The brain, like our muscles, develops proficiencies with repetition; and like our muscles, weakens with neglect. Losing our ability to write because we no longer have to will atrophy our ability to think at a deeper level and generate original ideas. Even as I write these sentences, my brain is processing concepts and wrestling with the best order of words and grammatical structure to express them. I reflect on tone, word choice, and clarity—a mental workout that’s like a personal training session for the mind. Much of that will be lost if an algorithm is doing the heavy lifting. It’s like an e-bike propelling a body forward without providing any of the physical benefits of exercise. We’ll get to our destination all the same, but the passenger aided by technology won’t become as strong and fit.
The degree to which technology can rewire our cognitive abilities is evident in social media. Apps like Instagram and X, which serve up short, digestible content, have eroded our attention spans and willingness to engage with more substantive written material. We’ve been snacking on bite-sized appetizers of information for so long we can no longer stomach a full meal—nor have the capacity to finish one. Consequently, we’re losing much of the deeper meaning and nuance hidden in longer articles. And the full richness of knowledge, which can’t be expressed in a 240-character tweet, is lost.
This is not to say that generative AI should be avoided. I believe we ought to embrace it to ensure that its adoption remains ethical and improves society rather than harms it. But given its potential to alter fundamental aspects of how we think and communicate, I’m committed to preserving what’s at stake, namely, our ability to generate and shape complex, original ideas. I will try to write now more than ever and not let the new personal trainer do all the heavy lifting.
Because everyone likes a healthy body, but also a healthy mind.