The AI Risk No One is Talking About

Greater Efficiency Doesn’t Have to Mean Less Empathy

AI is everywhere now. It’s changed the way we work, how we interact, and even the way we think. With its ability to process data at lightning speed and generate answers faster than we can blink, it’s no surprise that AI has become indispensable in everyday life. Whether it’s checking grammar, planning your day, summarizing long articles, or answering random trivia questions, AI is right there, doing the heavy lifting.

But while AI offers all of this efficiency, there’s something happening behind the scenes that no one seems to talk about. It’s not the biases embedded in algorithms or the fear of it overtaking human jobs. It’s something more subtle, something that’s affecting how we interact with both machines and, more alarmingly, people.

I’ve noticed it myself. The more I use AI—whether it’s to check grammar, provide quick explanations, organize my calendar, or even answer complex queries—the more my patience for it starts to wear thin. The slightest misunderstanding or delayed response sends me into frustration. If I ask it to summarize something and it misses the mark, my reaction is swift and sharp. “Come on,” I’ll mutter, “that’s not what I asked for.” I’d never speak to another person like that, but with AI? It somehow feels acceptable.

The problem isn’t that AI is imperfect and biased, just like humans— I think most of us have accepted that. The problem is that as we rely more and more on these tools, I fear we’ll begin to expect the same kind of speed, precision, and efficiency from people. Real people don’t have access to limitless data in real time, they don’t answer instantly, and they don’t always interpret your vague queries the way you expect. But if we keep interacting with machines that perform almost flawlessly, it’s easy to forget those differences.

And it’s not just about how we talk to AI. It’s about how we start talking to each other. As we lean on AI for everything from checking spelling to scheduling meetings to giving us instant updates, we start to get used to things happening quickly, with minimal error, without the bumps and delays of human communication. When real-life interactions don’t meet the same expectations, we’ll get frustrated, not because we don’t understand the limitations of humans, but because we’ve forgotten to respect those limitations. And that shift? It’s subtle but dangerous.

Worse, this overreliance on AI might even be making us dumber—or at least less sharp. Think about it: we’re outsourcing more and more of our cognitive tasks to AI. We get comprehensive lists with a click, limitless suggestions for responses, and lean on AI to sort through vast amounts of information for us. While all of this is convenient, it also means we’re using less of our own critical thinking muscles. We’re processing less, analyzing less, and engaging less with the material we used to handle on our own. That doesn’t just impact our productivity—it impacts our ability to think through problems, to challenge ourselves, and to truly understand what we’re doing.

Then there’s the risk of turning everything into a transaction. AI doesn’t have feelings, and that makes it the perfect tool for efficiency. But humans? We’re messy. We need time. We need patience. And in a world where we start expecting the same instantaneous results from people that we get from AI, we’ll begin to lose the very qualities that make human interaction rich and meaningful. We might not even realize we’re doing it, but our standards for real conversations will continue to rise to the level of machines, and that’s when we’ll start seeing friction in our relationships.

AI isn’t inherently bad—it’s a tool that can help us achieve more, think differently, and make our lives easier. But as we continue to integrate it into our daily lives, it’s important to remember that the best parts of being human—the messy, imperfect, slow, and often beautiful parts—can’t be replaced. We don’t have to abandon the progress that AI offers, but we can strive to use it mindfully, ensuring that we maintain the qualities that make us connect deeply with one another: patience, empathy, critical thinking, and the ability to embrace the imperfections in ourselves and others.

Moving forward, the challenge is finding balance. We can continue to harness AI’s power without letting it rob us of our humanity. By staying mindful of how these tools shape our behavior, and by prioritizing real, meaningful human interactions, we can ensure that technology complements our lives, rather than replaces the most essential parts of who we are. With the right intention, we can use AI to elevate our potential, not diminish it—and in doing so, we’ll preserve the richness of our shared human experience.

All love. McC.