ChatGPT makes your brain slower. This is proven by scientists.

If you want to appear smart and efficient, type a half baked prompt into ChatGPT. You’ll get a polished answer. It’s easy to personalize it. You just tweak it and hit send. What if your little brain saver actually dulls it? In a study published in June 2025 by MIT, something very uncomfortable was revealed. ChatGPT users who rely on it for tasks like problem-solving or writing or even idea generation show noticeable changes in brain activity.

Researchers tracked brain activity over a period of four months using EEG scans. Who is the AI user? They showed reduced memory, slower brains and less connections even after stopping using the AI.

What the MIT Study showed

The findings were the first to show that artificial intelligence has a profound impact on how we think or, rather, how little we think. We don’t give our minds the space they need to engage in those tasks so we outsource them. 

As we age, we tend to become less able to think critically.  

• Why is Google less harmful than ChatGPT 
• What does AI mean in terms of how we work, stay sharp, and learn?

Researchers at MIT’s Human Systems Lab monitored 54 University students for a period of four months. Then, they divided the students into three groups. 

1. The “Brain Only” GroupThe software allows users to solve problems and write essays without the need for external tools.
2. Google group Search online for help.
3. ChatGPT Group The AI was used to help with tasks such a brainstorming and outlining. 

The three groups were divided into Equipped with electroencephalogram (EEG) monitorsThis study tracked brain activity in real time, specifically in regions associated with Memory, concentration, and decision making.

This is what they found

• The ChatGPT Group showed a significant reduction in neural engagement, especially in the prefrontal cortex — the part tied to deep thinking and planning.
• Also retained More information The surface level solutions were more common.
• Even after AI users were instructed to work without assistance, they continued to do so. Their brains did not fully re-engage. Several cognitive functions lag behind the other groups by weeks.

When comparing this group with the Google one, it is clear that they have maintained higher cognitive activation. Searching, after all, remains a cognitively demanding activity. 

When AI interprets for you, the danger is not that you become dull. It’s that your thinking, especially deep thinking, becomes unnecessary. You don’t even see certain brain areas that start to activate. They begin to shrink.

Memory, creativity and long-term cognitive change

The most alarming aspect of the MIT research is that it shows the brain starting to lose its place. EEG scans show the first decrease in activity, particularly the hippocampus, in memory-related areas.

• Students began to rely on OpenAI software, which produced more answers that resembled structures we’ve seen before.
• This would mean that they were not actually learningThey were assembling. This phenomenon has been called cognitive drift, which has nothing to do with cognitive decline or instant damage.
• This practice can lead to a gradual loss of creativity, memory, and critical thinking.

It is important to drive this home.

• The machine can help you finish faster, look more efficient and achieve your goals. But what are the long-term benefits? 
• It’s no different when it comes to thinking. 

Costs of excessive AI 

You will not realize the danger of slow cognitive erosion until you are already lost. You will continue to send emails, make reports and argue.

You will feel like you are doing the same thing over and over again. And you will notice that you start thinking about things you don’t really believe in. This is cognitive dissociation.

 Overuse of AI can be viewed as a way to detach from your own thinking. The struggle to find the right sentence, the stumbles which would lead to real insight and the mental sweat to make those ideas yours.

The study shows the map of damages that it has caused. The AI is not responding, so the blanks are visible.

You feel like you have no idea where to start and the words you use sound right, but they are hollow and unfulfilling. Let’s not lose sight of the fact that we built these tools so they can think for us.