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Conversation with Gemini: MIT Lab’s Report on ChatGPT Usage and Potential Harm

4 min readJun 23, 2025

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Ken: Is there a recent study suggesting that heavy use of ChatGPT may reduce neural connectivity?

Gemini: Yes. A recent MIT study published in June 2025 — “Your Brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of Cognitive Debt when Using an AI Assistant for Essay Writing Tasks” — raises concerns about cognitive effects associated with heavy reliance on AI tools like ChatGPT.

Key findings include:

  • Weakened Neural Connectivity: EEG scans revealed that participants using ChatGPT showed reduced engagement of alpha and beta brain networks, especially in regions linked to memory, attention, and executive function.
  • Cognitive Debt: The researchers introduced the term cognitive debt to describe the cost of repeatedly outsourcing cognitive tasks to AI, potentially weakening independent thought and creativity over time.
  • Diminished Memory & Ownership: ChatGPT users struggled to recall content from their own essays and felt less ownership over their writing.
  • Lasting Effects: Even after switching to non-AI writing tasks, prior ChatGPT users exhibited persistently reduced neural activity, suggesting a lingering dependency.
  • Performance Decline: Compared to control groups (those using search…

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Kenneth Leong
Kenneth Leong

Written by Kenneth Leong

Author, Zen teacher, scientific mystic, professor, photographer, philosopher, social commentator, socially engaged human

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