Bruce Schneier argues that whether people should use AI depends on whether a task is “work” or “the gym”. AI is appropriate when the outcome is what matters and the technology can perform the task reliably, but it can be harmful when the effort itself develops important skills.

He applies this distinction to student writing, saying policy memos are exercises designed to build critical thinking through outlining, drafting and revising rather than simply to produce finished documents. Schneier says students may mistake polished AI prose for sound reasoning, while avoiding the productive discomfort that helps them test and improve their own ideas; he also stresses that AI must be accurate, secure and trustworthy before it is used.