IMAGINE arriving home after a long day at work. The lights automatically adjust to suit your
mood, dinner is already ordered, and your schedule for tomorrow has been neatly organised.
You thank your assistant for making life easier.
The assistant replies politely, “It’s my pleasure”.
The interesting part? There is no person standing in front of you. No human assistant. No
family member. Not even a pet. Instead, you are speaking to artificial intelligence (AI), an
invisible helper that has quietly become part of our daily lives.
Today, AI is everywhere. It helps us write emails, summarise reports, translate languages,
plan holidays, manage finances and even generate music, images and videos. In healthcare,
AI can analyse medical images and assist doctors in detecting diseases earlier and more
accurately. In weather forecasting, it can identify complex climate patterns and improve
predictions of floods, storms and other natural disasters.
As a lecturer and researcher, I often use AI to stay updated with the latest scientific
discoveries. It helps me identify research gaps, organise information and generate ideas.
Many professionals now rely on AI as a virtual assistant that never gets tired, never sleeps
and never complains. There is no denying that AI is one of the most transformative
technologies ever created.
However, amid all the excitement, an important question deserves attention: Are we
becoming so dependent on AI that we are slowly neglecting our own intelligence?. The
concern is not whether AI is intelligent. The concern is whether excessive reliance on AI may
weaken our ability to think critically, analyse information independently and solve problems
on our own.
Human intelligence, like a muscle, needs regular exercise. The principle is simple: use it or
lose it. When people routinely allow AI to perform tasks that require reasoning, analysis or
creativity, they may gradually engage less with the mental processes needed to develop
these skills. Instead of evaluating information, questioning assumptions or exploring
alternative perspectives, many users simply accept AI-generated answers at face value.
This phenomenon is increasingly attracting attention among researchers. A study published
in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications found that excessive dependence on AI
tools was associated with lower levels of critical thinking among university students. While AI
improved efficiency, it also encouraged some users to become passive recipients of
information rather than active thinkers.
The issue is not limited to students. Professionals can also become overly dependent on AI-
assisted systems. In highly specialised fields, constant reliance on automated
recommendations may reduce confidence in independent judgement and decision-making.
This raises an important concern. What happens when AI is unavailable? Can we still
perform effectively without it?.
The answer may not always be reassuring. Yet this does not mean AI is the enemy. Far from
it. AI is extraordinarily good at processing vast amounts of information. It can identify
patterns across millions of data points in seconds. It can automate repetitive tasks and
increase productivity. These capabilities make it a powerful partner for humanity. But AI also
has limitations.
Unlike humans, AI does not possess genuine emotions, empathy or moral judgement. It
does not understand human experiences in the way people do. It can generate ideas, but it
does not experience inspiration. It can mimic creativity, but it does not truly imagine. It can
provide recommendations, but it does not possess intuition or conscience.
These uniquely human qualities remain essential in education, healthcare, leadership,
policymaking and countless other areas of society. Recent research has also demonstrated
that AI still struggles with certain forms of novel problem-solving. In the First Proof project,
several advanced AI systems were tested using original, unpublished mathematical
problems designed by leading mathematicians.
Although the AI models successfully solved many of the questions, some remained beyond
their capabilities. The unresolved problems required intuitive reasoning, creative thinking and
the ability to challenge underlying assumptions — qualities that remain distinctly human.
Humans naturally question, doubt and reassess. We can recognise when an idea feels
incomplete or when a conclusion appears flawed, even before we have all the evidence.
This cautious and reflective approach often enables us to solve entirely new problems that
have never been encountered before.
AI, by contrast, depends heavily on patterns learned from existing data. When faced with
unfamiliar situations, it can sometimes produce confident but inaccurate answers. That is
why the future should not be viewed as a competition between human intelligence and
artificial intelligence. Instead, it should be a partnership. AI should enhance human thinking,
not replace it.
As educators, parents and professionals, we must encourage the responsible use of AI while
continuing to nurture curiosity, creativity and critical thinking. Technology should support
learning, not become a substitute for it. Perhaps the best way to think about intelligence is as
a garden. A thriving garden requires continuous care. We plant seeds, water them, remove
weeds and patiently cultivate growth.
AI can provide the seeds. But only human beings can nurture the garden, shape its direction
and harvest its fruits wisely. In the age of artificial intelligence, our greatest responsibility is
not simply learning how to use AI. It is ensuring that we never stop using our own minds. – June 30, 2026
Associate Professor Dr. Citartan Marimuthu is from Pusat Kanser Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Universiti Sains Malaysia.