Critical thinking isn’t just a buzzword. It’s the backbone of every invention, every new idea, every breakthrough product or service. It’s the ability to see connections that others miss, to ask ‘why’ when others say ‘that’ll do’.

But it’s not something that can be downloaded or automated. It’s a muscle that needs constant exercise.

Have we lost confidence in our ability to interpret the world for ourselves? We outsource our judgment to experts, commentators, columnists…and now, machines. We let them do the heavy lifting and tell us what to think. It’s easier to share someone else’s tweet or repeat their soundbite than to sit with a complex issue and admit that the truth isn’t neat, and that maybe no one has the whole picture.

But democracy only really works when citizens question what they’re told.

A comprehensive study published in the journal Societies sheds light on a concerning trend: that individuals aged 17–25 exhibit the highest reliance on AI tools and, correspondingly, the lowest scores in critical thinking assessments. The research indicates a significant negative correlation between frequent AI tool usage and critical thinking abilities, underpinned by increased cognitive offloading.

As young adults delegate more cognitive tasks to AI, their capacity for independent analysis and problem-solving diminishes.