The Verge: Brains aren't computers, and AI is junk food for the mind
benjaminjriley · x · 2026-10-06
Writing in The Verge, Benjamin Riley argues that the AI industry's metaphor of the brain as a computer (citing Demis Hassabis and Elon Musk) is deeply misleading and explains why AI products are making a mess of culture.
Key points:
- Invoking cybernetics pioneer Norbert Wiener's idea that each age's thought is reflected in its technique, he contends the input-computation-output model of thought, while productive, understates human cognitive complexity.
- Drawing on neuroscience and human evolutionary history, he frames AI as "cognitive junk food": appealing in the moment but corrosive to the knowledge systems humans evolved over millennia.
- His conclusion: Big Tech is systematically dismantling institutions and norms for learning and communication, clogging our capacity to build the knowledge needed to navigate the world.
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