Cognitive Offloading

Cognitive offloading is when you use a tool to do your thinking for you instead of doing it yourself. For example, using a calculator instead of working out the maths in your head.

With generative AI, you can “offload” almost any thinking task from writing an essay to solving a problem with a simple prompt.

The problem is that struggling through a task is actually how your brain learns and remembers. If AI does the hard part for you, you get the answer but miss the mental workout that builds the skill.