Does Chris Williamson think AI makes students learn less?

Chris Williamson said students now face both constant distraction and a permanent AI shortcut that only imitates learning, citing a study suggesting students who use AI retain far less. A fellow panellist added that London black cab drivers show structural brain changes from memorising the city, which Uber drivers probably do not, because the difficulty and the cost of failure are what change the brain.

• One panellist now asks an AI a question, pauses to form his own answer, then compares the two.
• One suggested teachers give students five AI outputs and grade them on which is best and why.
• Another panellist wondered whether brain gyms will appear, as physical gyms did once manual labour faded.

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on Modern Wisdom (2026-10-26). Read the whole episode summary →

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