Lately, researchers have started sounding the alarm about what they call “brain rot”, a decline in critical thinking and memory caused by overusing AI tools, chatbots, and social media.
Let’s break this down in simple terms.
1. What researchers are finding
A professor at the Wharton School of Business asked 250 people to give advice on living a healthier lifestyle.
Half used Google search, the other half used Google’s AI summaries.
The results?
The AI users gave predictable answers like “eat healthy and sleep more.”
The traditional Google users gave richer, more thoughtful advice that showed actual understanding.
That’s the concern: AI tools are doing more of the thinking for us. And when we stop thinking deeply, our ability to reason, analyze, and remember starts to fade.
One of the researchers even said, “I’m worried younger people won’t know how to perform a simple Google search anymore.”
2. The rise of “brain rot”
The term “brain rot” became so popular that Oxford named it the 2024 Word of the Year. It describes what happens when we consume too much low-quality online content, endless TikToks, short clips, and now AI-generated summaries that spoon-feed us answers instead of making us think.
It’s not a new worry. Socrates once said writing would make people forgetful.
But now the concern is real: test scores in reading and comprehension across U.S. schools are dropping fast, especially since the pandemic increased screen time.
3. What the data shows
A study from MIT found that when students wrote essays using ChatGPT, their brain activity dropped dramatically compared to those who wrote on their own.
Even worse one minute after finishing, 83% of the ChatGPT users couldn’t remember a single line they wrote.
If you don’t remember what you wrote, do you really understand it?
The same goes for social media. A study of over 6,000 children showed that those who spent more time on apps like TikTok and Instagram scored lower in reading, memory, and vocabulary. The more hours spent scrolling, the lower the performance.
4. Why this happens
Every hour on social media replaces time we could spend reading, learning, or sleeping.
AI and social media also make us passive learners.
Instead of exploring ideas, evaluating sources, or connecting the dots ourselves, we just accept whatever the screen shows us.
And that’s dangerous especially in fields where accuracy, logic, and problem-solving matter (like IT, cybersecurity, or medicine).
5. So how do we use AI without frying our brains?
The good news: AI isn’t evil. The problem is how we use it.
Here are a few smart habits you can follow — the same I recommend to my students:
🧩 Start with your own brain. Try to solve or write something first before asking ChatGPT for help. You’ll retain more.
✍️ Use AI like a calculator. Once you’ve worked through the problem manually, let AI check or refine your work.
📚 Read, don’t just skim. When learning a new concept, read articles, books, or documentation yourself — not just AI summaries.
📵 Set screen-free zones. No phones at dinner, study time, or bedtime. Your focus and sleep will thank you.
⏱️ Use AI for small questions, not big thinking. Look up quick facts or commands, but don’t let it write essays or think for you.
6. The bottom line
AI and social media are powerful tools — but they can weaken the very skills that make us human: curiosity, memory, and independent thinking.
So the next time you’re tempted to let AI handle everything for you, pause and think: Am I learning, or just scrolling?