Cognitive Debt - Why AI makes human judgment the bottleneck

Is AI taking work off our hands?

AI isn’t just changing how we build; it’s shifting our role from producing to judging. This transition creates cognitive load.

This talk explores what happens when AI-assisted work intersects with chronic stress. Because stress impairs attention, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, it directly undercuts the exact faculties knowledge workers need to supervise AI effectively.

We won’t ban AI or declare the end of human intelligence. Instead, we will examine how our cognitive systems function (the brain!) under pressure to design healthier, smarter ways to collaborate with AI.

Ultimately, the best knowledge workers in an AI-saturated workplace won’t be those who output the most content, but those who maintain clarity under pressure and leverage AI without surrendering their critical thinking.