Smartphones, Social Media, And AI Are Chemically Altering Our Brains

I’ve written about the convergence of technology in a number of recent Forbes pieces, discussing how AI, quantum, and other emerging technologies are changing our infrastructure, security, and economy. However, the convergence of technology with our own neurochemistry is a more personal convergence that we are not talking about enough. Technology is changing the brain systems that govern our attention, not just vying for it.

We are more than just preoccupied; our minds are being hijacked. We are changing chemically. There is no moral failing or lack of discipline behind the attention-span crisis. It is intended to be a biological result.

Because human attention is the basis for critical thinking, creativity, innovation, and even constructive democratic discourse, all of these factors are important. When attention breaks, everything built upon it weakens.

ForbesThe Convergence Revolution — When AI Meets Every Emerging TechnologyBy Chuck Brooks

2. Cortisol and the Constantly Alert State

Our world is always connected thanks to our engineering. The smartphone has evolved into the ultimate Internet of Things sensor, constantly pinging, vibrating, and buzzing. According to Microsoft’s 2025 Work Trend Index, the typical knowledge worker gets 117 emails and 153 Teams messages every day. During core work hours, interruptions occur every two minutes, or about 275 times in an eight-hour workday. New Microsoft Study Reveals the Rise of the “Infinite Workday” – 40% of Employees Check Email Before 6 a.m., Evening Meetings Up 16% - Microsoft Switzerland News Center

Every alert sets off a micro-stress response, which is a transient spike in cortisol and norepinephrine that causes the sympathetic nervous system to enter a low-grade fight-or-flight state. Chronic attentional vigilance is the result of the cumulative effect. It becomes neurologically challenging to focus deeply when the brain is still ready for disruption.

ForbesAI Is The 21st Century Force MultiplierBy Chuck Brooks