The practice of using external tools, technologies, or actions to reduce the amount of mental effort needed to complete a task. Examples include using a calendar instead of remembering an appointment, a calculator instead of doing arithmetic mentally, or a search engine instead of recalling information from memory. The concept predates generative AI.

AI greatly expands the kinds of cognitive work that can be offloaded, including summarizing information, generating ideas, analyzing material, drafting text, solving problems, and organizing knowledge. Cognitive offloading can improve efficiency, but increased reliance on external tools may also affect how often people practice or develop the underlying cognitive skills themselves.