The epistemic compression trap: AI makes you confident faster than wise
YogeshMalik · x · 2026-11-04
A chart on the "Epistemic Compression Trap" shows how the AI pipeline spikes speed-of-answer/confidence instantly while human cognition needs a long "zone of productive struggle" to build judgment. Friction is erased (the cognitive work that builds understanding is amputated), creating an institutional blind spot where people become confident faster and wise slower — producing users who are decisive but systematically miscalibrated in high-stakes, novel scenarios.
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