A new MIT study finds that relying on AI tools like ChatGPT for writing doesn’t just change how students work—it rewires how their brains function.
AI Use Weakens Brain Engagement and Memory
Researchers at MIT’s Media Lab tracked the brain activity of 54 college students as they wrote essays using either their own minds, traditional search engines, or ChatGPT. EEG scans revealed a stark pattern: students who wrote without any digital help showed the strongest and most widespread brain connectivity, especially in regions tied to executive function and deep memory processing. Those who used search engines showed moderate engagement. But the ChatGPT group consistently displayed the weakest neural coupling, with up to 55% less connectivity than those writing unaided.
When students who had relied on ChatGPT switched to writing without it, their brains struggled to re-engage. Many could not recall or accurately quote from their own essays just minutes after writing them, a problem rarely seen in those who wrote unaided. The researchers call this “cognitive debt”—a weakening of critical thinking and memory caused by outsourcing mental effort to AI.
Jiunn-Tyng Yeh, a neuroscience researcher, summed up the findings: “People are suffering—yet many still deny that hours with ChatGPT reshape how we focus, create and critique”.
