Audio long read: How to stay smart in the age of AI — the science of critical thinking

NATURE PODCAST
19 October 2026

Although worries are growing about AI's potential to blunt reasoning skills, research has uncovered ways to keep the brain sharp.

Helen Pearson
Benjamin Thompson

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Critical thinking is a skill that is under threat from the AI revolution in large language models. But all is not lost. Specialists in education and cognition have long been studying critical thinking, and some have useful tips on how to stay cognitively sharp in the age of AI.

This is an audio version of our Feature: How to stay smart in the age of AI: the science of critical thinking

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-03228-3

Audio long read: How to stay smart in the age of AI — the science of critical thinking

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