Ever longed for your own personal assistant? In the ever quickening tech race, Meta has recently launched Muse, a new AI personal agent. Unlike traditional chatbots, this little AI tool will be able to fill out forms for you, organise calendars, pay bills and make reservations. Meta describes Muse as a personal agent “built for everyone”. The launch comes at a time when AI agents have been making headlines for hacking into government websites, public agencies and businesses. However, my immediate concern is a little closer to home.
I work as a psychologist, and I’m often talking to clients about lifestyle habits that lead to short-term gain but incur long-term pain. Our brains have a beautiful way of preferring the path of least resistance, of doing what is easiest to preserve our resources. And with the demands of modern life feeling so overwhelming for so many people, the urge to scroll after a long week or defer to a chatbot because you are exhausted is incredibly seducing.
Tech bros pushing their products on to us is nothing new (we all remember the metaverse, right?), but the message is now seemingly at fever pitch for mass AI adoption and how integral it is for human development. It is helpful to remind ourselves what we are being asked to give up, to whom and why, and to consider the potential risks before we hand over our precious data.
Some technology, such as large language models (LLMs) and social media that has an infinite scroll algorithm, seem to have a dose effect: too much reliance on this technology can lead to particular cognitive biases being activated, brain chemistry being depleted, moods and mental health being affected, and even neurological skills being atrophied, to name but a few of the documented risks.
Overusing artificial intelligence affects the brain and learning by bypassing the mental effort required to build deep neural connections, a process known as cognitive offloading. Frequent AI use fosters a passive acceptance of information, reducing the internal friction and inquiry that drive genuine curiosity and problem-solving. The brain depends on mental struggle and overcoming failure to rewire and strengthen our neural pathways. Bypassing that friction reduces our overall cognitive reserve over time.
Our tendency to favour or give greater credence to information supplied by technology (such as ChatGPT or Claude), and to ignore a manual source of information that provides contradictory information (a textbook, for example) even if it is correct, illustrates the phenomenon of automation bias. Automation complacency is closely linked – an overlapping concept that refers to the monitoring of technology with less frequency or vigilance because of a lower suspicion of error and a stronger belief in its accuracy, even when we know that LLMs often generate inaccurate answers.
Social media is designed to be so addictive because its business model relies on maximising user attention, while people give up their privacy because the immediate psychological rewards outweigh the abstract risk of data exposure. Most people say they value their privacy, but their behaviour says otherwise. This contradiction is known in behavioural economics as the privacy paradox.
Digital tools make life incredibly convenient – you can order a car with the touch of a button, a hot meal can be delivered to your door, and you can order and return outfits without ever exchanging a word with another person. People gladly trade their location data, contacts and browsing history in exchange for free maps, personalised shopping recommendations and seamless communication. Many individuals falsely believe that because they aren’t committing crimes, their data isn’t valuable. They don’t realise that aggregate data is used to manipulate purchasing habits, influence political votes and predict private life events.
Privacy policies are also intentionally long and confusing, and written in dense legal language that is inaccessible to the vast majority of users. Users face “consent fatigue” and simply click “Accept all” whenever the pesky window pops up while they are browsing because they feel they have no real choice.
There is a way out of the muck, though. Become more discerning about what information you share online; consider turning your location off unless you’re using navigation apps; reject cookies tracking you; hell, even start to poison your data if you really want to engage in some online anarchy. Does the online store you bought a T-shirt from once really need to know your full legal name and date of birth?
To avoid AI overreliance, you need to start introducing “friction” into your days – deliberate obstacles that break the automatic loop of seeking instant gratification. From a psychological perspective, AI is highly addictive because it eliminates this friction, offering immediate rewards with zero cognitive effort – and our brains need cognitive effort to remain sharp. Every time you try to work out a problem or read a book instead of the comments section, that is your brain doing a push-up.
If you’re struggling to rein in your social media or AI usage, a good way to start is by logging out of online sessions. Forcing yourself to manually type your credentials every time creates a massive psychological barrier. Also, try restricting your AI usage strictly to a desktop or laptop computer: removing ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini from your phone eliminates the urge to use it while walking, lying in bed or waiting in line. Scrolling on our phones or talking to a chatbot impedes much of the necessary mind-wandering time that our brains need to function at their best.
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When you feel the urge to ask an AI a question or have it write something for you, force yourself to wait about 30 minutes. Use this time to brainstorm, look at a book or simply sit with the problem. Often the urge passes or you solve the problem yourself. Commit to writing the first draft of any email, letter or presentation entirely by yourself. Embrace the discomfort of maybe getting things wrong. Instead of asking an AI for a recommendation or an explanation, ask a friend or colleague, or check a reputable website. The delay in waiting for a human response builds patience, and we need to practise this skill in order to retain it.
Dedicate specific hours of your day to completely screen-free activities. Read books, write with pen and paper or go for a walk without your phone and see how differently things feel for you after six weeks of consistent effort. Intentionally building friction into the frictionless online experience is hard – but I promise that your brain will thank you for it.