Is AI making us lazy (and more dependent)?

I’m going to say something that might not be very popular: I think AI is making us lazier. And honestly, I see that as a problem. Mind you, I’m no enemy of AI—I think it’s a wonderful technology and I use it every day—but for a while now I’ve been noticing a side effect that worries me, in other people and in myself.

From building everything by hand to automating everything

Two or three years ago, when artificial intelligence wasn’t everywhere yet, we were used to working differently. If you were a freelancer building websites, you built everything by hand. There were no automations and no shortcuts: every single thing, however digital, was handcrafted, piece by piece.

Then AI came along and swept away all those repetitive, tedious tasks that used to eat up our time. And on that front, let me be clear, I think it’s wonderful. I’m really glad it exists, because there were pointless jobs that added nothing and now they simply disappear. So far, so good.

The problem: we get used to doing nothing

The problem comes right after. Since we now automate everything, we’re getting used to working less and less and letting AI do it. And that, little by little, is making us lazier.

Why is that a problem? Because sooner or later a task comes along that artificial intelligence can’t do, and that’s when you realize how spoiled you’ve gotten. Psychologically, it feels like a massive chore, and it takes a mental effort that never used to cost you anything, simply because we barely do anything for ourselves anymore.

And I’m speaking from experience. I can tell I’m getting lazier and lazier. I used to do far more things by hand; now, if I have to do something manually, however small, my first thought is: “I wish AI could do this.” Three years ago, that never happened to me.

The same effect as social media

The comparison with social media really helps me here. A lot of people have lost their ability to concentrate and pay attention because of it: you get used to everything being fast, to consuming everything in seconds, and you end up getting tired right away of anything that takes a bit of sustained effort.

I think artificial intelligence is going to cause something very similar, but at work. It’s going to make all of us lazier and more dependent, because once a machine does something, we no longer want to go back to doing it ourselves by hand. We lose the muscle, just like we’re losing it with attention.

The dependence that’s coming (and why it’s a risk)

And this, for me, is the real long-term danger: dependence. If we delegate absolutely everything, we end up completely dependent on AI companies. And down the line, those companies can raise their prices.

Right now it’s all fairly cheap, sure, but you have to understand why: many of these companies are practically giving the service away, running at a loss, burning cash to win market share. That won’t last forever. Five years from now, when almost everything depends on AI, I see two paths: either we pay huge sums of money to companies like Anthropic, OpenAI and the rest, or we start investing in running AI locally. The latter means a big outlay up front, but in the long run it more than pays for itself.

And the most unsettling part is that there’s no going back. Once you’ve tried something as convenient as having AI automate everything for you, going back to the way we used to work stops being a real option. That convenience is addictive, and getting hooked on something someone else controls is always a delicate thing.

Conclusion

Don’t get me wrong: artificial intelligence is incredible and I have no intention of giving it up, not least because, as I said, there’s no going back. But I do think it’s worth being aware of what we’re trading away along the way: our skills, our tolerance for effort and a good part of our independence. I try to use it for what it is, a tool, and to force myself every now and then to do things by hand so I don’t lose touch with the craft. Because the day all we know how to do is ask AI for things, we’ll be far more vulnerable than we think.