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AI Brain Fry Is Real. Here’s What Leaders Can Do | Julie Bedard | TED

Workers everywhere are quietly redesigning their jobs around AI, boosting productivity but also creating new kinds of problems. AI advisor Julie Bedard thinks she has a fix. She shares new research on three areas for leaders to focus on — including how to avoid “AI brain fry” — and why we need to shape this…

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Workers everywhere are quietly redesigning their jobs around AI, boosting productivity but also creating new kinds of problems. AI advisor Julie Bedard thinks she has a fix. She shares new research on three areas for leaders to focus on — including how to avoid “AI brain fry” — and why we need to shape this change rather than let it happen to us. (Recorded at TED@BCG on August 17, 2026)

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27 Comments

  1. @Hybridsixtynine

    November 9, 2026 at 11:00 am

    never came so early

    • @alexischase6293

      November 9, 2026 at 11:04 am

      Right? XD

  2. @sathdora2025

    November 9, 2026 at 11:14 am

    I never use AI or avoid when I can. I feel AI is like writing something down. Once you write it down you forget it. I feel the more people lean on AI the less they will be able to do. Also I don’t want to correct AI mistakes

    • @unholyrevenger72

      November 9, 2026 at 11:21 am

      Writing things down by hand actually helps most people remember it.

  3. @unholyrevenger72

    November 9, 2026 at 11:22 am

    The billionaires who own our leaders want our brains fried.

    • @join_or_die

      November 9, 2026 at 4:20 pm

      politicians shouldn’t be your leaders lmao

  4. @daledevernon56

    November 9, 2026 at 11:25 am

    I’ve been using AI now for the last 2 years almost every day and what I found is that it’s not the technology itself that is the problem it is what people choose to do with it that is.

    • @NiekopTube

      November 9, 2026 at 11:37 am

      I have bought a midi chromatic harmonica and asked several times the seller/manufacturer for a detailed manual. No reaction! I asked ai and “he” analysed which firmware version I have and gave me a complete handout how to program my harmonica. No way that I could have figured that out by myself: I’m a big fan! Brainwash… is reading the papers daily!

    • @TheZombie1984

      November 9, 2026 at 1:39 pm

      And for every one person like you using it for responsible tasks, there’s ten others using it for homework, relationships, office emails, online spam, aggressive advertising, propaganda, automated cheating in games, coding and changing their computers (should be a learned skill or your PC becomes a blackbox), pyramid schemes, replacing human workers. The list goes on, but the point being your use might be benign, but majority is making the world much trashier full of even more noise to ignore than before.

  5. @Mr.believe-s8t

    November 9, 2026 at 11:50 am

    AI is crucial for our lives

    • @Alfvenwaves

      November 9, 2026 at 2:59 pm

      🙄

    • @join_or_die

      November 9, 2026 at 4:23 pm

      @Alfvenwaves get your head out of the sand and you’ll see

  6. @robcoredickery

    November 9, 2026 at 12:09 pm

    i’ve worked in trust & safety at an ai giant for nearly 4yrs. brain’s mos-def being fried

  7. @vanessabloom8090

    November 9, 2026 at 12:33 pm

    I think those who try to warn the optimistic user need to get current on AI capabilities. Some say ai has no morals and it SHOULDN’T, but the more advanced models will refuse to do things that don’t break guardrails just because the agent sees the harm it could cause the user. I hear every warning and I agree with many, but I think the biggest fear for me is that ppl don’t even know what it is that they’re being cautious of. We’re not keeping up. AI literacy NEEDS to be pushed.

    • @TheZombie1984

      November 9, 2026 at 1:33 pm

      Those will always get obliterated and reshared online, not to mention its a game of whackamole aligning them in the first place.

  8. @AdvantestInc

    November 9, 2026 at 12:57 pm

    The apprenticeship point stands out. Producing good work and building the judgment behind it are two different milestones.

  9. @seanzesaltlord

    November 9, 2026 at 12:57 pm

    I NEVER use ai, I don’t need to rely on non-human emotions or find a reason or an excuse to use AI.

  10. @yuka-san13

    November 9, 2026 at 1:43 pm

    Thats why AI will be usefull when we use it wisely

  11. @Alfvenwaves

    November 9, 2026 at 3:01 pm

    If AI fails: we lose (mostly through the stock market).

    If AI “wins”: we lose much, much more.

  12. @ALittleHelpFromMyLens

    November 9, 2026 at 3:04 pm

    This video is AI.

  13. @rabbitscope

    November 9, 2026 at 3:50 pm

    Honestly this explains so much about how my brain feels lately 😊

  14. @andrewcaldin3322

    November 9, 2026 at 4:03 pm

    Julie Bedard raises crucial issues regarding how AI is reshaping our work lives and the potential for “AI brain fry”. It’s essential that leaders actively guide this transition rather than simply react. A passive approach could exacerbate the risks associated with over-reliance on technology, leading to diminished human capability, as some comments have highlighted. We must be vigilant and ensure AI enhances our judgement and creativity, rather than undermining them.

  15. @ArenVelys

    November 9, 2026 at 4:14 pm

    Technology is supposed to make our lives easier, not turn our minds into machines that never stop working. The real challenge isn’t how much AI we can use, but how wisely we use it without losing our ability to think, create, and make decisions. A very important conversation for the future of work.

  16. @Gibboon

    November 9, 2026 at 6:27 pm

    Ironically this script reads very AI.

  17. @RedInsightfulStar221

    November 9, 2026 at 6:40 pm

    AI is supposed to enhance human intelligence and productivity, not overwhelm our cognitive abilities. I think the real challenge is learning how to use technology strategically while preserving independent thinking, creativity, and human judgment.

  18. @CEREVITY

    November 9, 2026 at 7:18 pm

    “My team is producing 10x more output, 10x faster, yet my job feels 20x harder.” The manager in this story also said she felt more lonely, not more collaborative, and that is the part worth noticing: high performers often read isolation as a workload problem when it is really a loss of contact with the people who share the weight. The test is whether the capacity you gained went toward more output or toward more time with the people you work alongside.

  19. @BrandonTwede

    November 9, 2026 at 8:29 pm

    Why does this script sound AI generated?

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