Heavy AI use can quietly erode professional skills, study warns

AI now serves as an assistant in medicine, research, and software development. Finnish philosopher Kaisa Kärki published a study in the journal Human Affairs, looking at how AI causes skill decay and who should take responsibility.

The study says workers can hardly notice their own skill loss. One reason is a cognitive bias toward relying on AI. Replies from large language models look convincing, but they make mistakes too. If a doctor misses such errors, it can lead to medical accidents, and who is to blame is still unclear.

Kärki believes skill decay is a social and structural problem, not just a personal one. Each industry should define the core skills that must stay with humans. For example, medical schools could set AI-free stages for basic training, and even senior workers should take regular core skill tests.

If workplaces keep expanding AI use while ignoring the risk, we may lose the ability to train new people without AI. The study calls on industries to define core human skills and set rules before wide skill decline happens.