Opposition to artificial intelligence might be the only issue that unites a polarized America right now. More adults predict that AI will have a negative impact on them than a positive one. As a high school history and English teacher, I sympathize with these concerns. I’ve witnessed students using chatbots to write essays, summarize complex readings and cheat on exams, all actions that undermine the very purpose of education.
Yet the impassioned outright denunciations of AI make me uneasy. Yes, AI can make us “stupider.” And yes, many AI companies are singularly focused on dollars at the expense of safety and privacy. But for the millions of Americans who suffer from memory loss, AI tools can provide vital support to maintain cognition and health.
I’m a 43-year-old with no history of concussions — an unlikely candidate for memory impairment. But due to several manic and depressive episodes associated with bipolar disorder — along with rounds of electroconvulsive therapy to treat it — I have trouble recollecting names, dates, places, events, schedules and other information that can adversely affect my personal and professional relationships. I need to ask my wife if I’ve attended family celebrations or funerals; I even struggle to recall the details of my own wedding.
A host of AI tools help me compensate for these deficits.
I depend on Evernote, a platform that hosts thousands of journal notes I’ve written about aspects of my life throughout the past decade, helping me remember everything from a difficult social interaction to a momentous life occasion. Evernote’s “AI Memory” function allows me to quickly sift through these notes and identify relevant memories or information I can’t recall in the moment. This process admittedly makes me nervous about privacy protections, but it’s a tradeoff I’ve chosen to make.
Similarly, the Apple Intelligence featureon the iPhotos app provides a search tool for names, events and places associated with photos in a library, a helpful aid when trying to recollect whether I was present at a gathering with friends or family.
And then there are tools like Claude Projects, where I can upload files and other data to create a custom chat capable of answering questions based on my own material, such as names, schedules and daily reminders. Claude Projects serves as something of an administrative assistant, helping me organize tasks and deadlines.
A critical distinction exists between using AI to compensate for memories that have been impacted by cognitive dysfunction, and employing AI that prevents memory formation.
Tools like these have the potential to benefit anyone suffering from memory loss. While my impairment is due to a particular medical condition and treatment history, age-related cognitive decline and dementia are more common causes of memory impairment. According to research funded by the National Institutes of Health, far more Americans suffer from dementia than previously thought. Researchers’ findings suggest 42% of Americans over age 55 will eventually suffer from dementia, and the number of new dementia cases is predicted to double by 2060. These statistics highlight the urgent need for technologies that can mitigate the effects of memory loss stemming from symptoms more severe and more difficult to treat than my own.
One promising example of an AI tool to support older adults is MemPal, developed by the MIT Media Lab. MemPal uses a camera worn around the neck of the user to observe and record the surrounding world. Using a multimodal large language model, MemPal creates a real-time automated text diary of actions and conversations between an individual and others. The technology allows users to ask questions like “Where is my phone?” or “Where is my wallet?” The device also provides reminders such as “Did you remember to turn off the stove?” While this kind of technology is in its early stages, a small studyconducted last year by researchers at the MIT Media Lab confirmed improved performance of object finding among users and an overall positive perception of the system. Tools like MemPal could be essential as cases of dementia continue to proliferate.
I recognize the irony of an educator proposing we rely on AI to improve our memories. We now know that over reliance on AI leads to <a href="https://www.media.mit.edu/publications/your-brain-on-chatgpt/” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank”>adverse outcomes, such as skipping key cognitive steps when learning new information and weaker neural activity when writing. Authors of an important research paper write:
In an era of generative AI and ubiquitous digital tools, human memory faces a paradox: the more we offload knowledge to external aids, the less we exercise and develop our own cognitive capacities.
The dangers of cognitive outsourcing are real, and we should take them seriously.
But the escalating public backlash against AI risks losing the nuance necessary to make judgments about its best uses. A critical distinction exists between using AI to compensate for memories that have been impacted by cognitive dysfunction, and employing AI that prevents memory formation. An adult with dementia using MemPal to remember to turn off the stove is different from a healthy student using ChatGPT to write an essay. The first compensates for a damaged capacity, while the second erodes the capacity itself.
Memory is deeply intertwined with selfhood, and the emergence of AI tools has empowered me to fully engage in the world as a father, husband, and teacher. So, while AI can indeed be a curse, for many, including me, it is a lifeline.
