Reports, podcasts, and memory. How AI could reshape our cognitive processes.
Google Gemini and the intelligence that’s transforming how we think
On March 22, 2025, Google introduced a new feature within its Gemini AI platform: the ability to convert detailed reports generated by its Deep Research tool into podcast-style audio content. The goal is not only to make complex analysis more accessible, but to present it in a conversational format—an experience designed for multitasking and daily life.
Yet this innovation represents more than a technical upgrade. It reflects a larger shift: information is no longer a static object to be read, but a fluid construct, ready to reshape itself according to our pace, our habits and our minds. And it is precisely within the mind that these technologies leave their most lasting marks.
Well-known cognitive research has long shown that the form in which information is presented profoundly shapes how we understand and retain it. Richard E. Mayer, in his foundational book Multimedia Learning (Cambridge University Press, 2001), developed the theory of multimedia learning. His research demonstrates that when information is delivered using both verbal and visual channels, it engages deeper cognitive processing.
Along the same lines, psychologist Jerome Bruner argued in The Narrative Construction of Reality (Critical Inquiry, 1991) that human cognition is naturally organized around narrative. We remember, understand, and process reality through stories. And among all narrative forms, dialogue plays a central role.
In this context, Google’s choice to embed knowledge into AI-generated podcast dialogues is far from superficial. These aren’t robotic readings—they are dynamic simulations of conversation. Studies like those of Jean E. Fox Tree suggest that speech patterns, with their pauses, repetitions, and informal tone, improve memory retention precisely because they mirror everyday social cognition (Journal of Memory and Language, 1995).
But alongside these cognitive opportunities come deeper questions. What happens when core mental activities—analyzing, synthesizing, building associations—are partially outsourced to an external system? Does AI support or substitute our thinking? Does it expand our minds, or slowly dull them?
This is not about resisting technology. It’s about understanding its consequences. The ability to transform complex content into customized, conversational narratives is an extraordinary tool. But precisely because of its power, it demands responsibility—from developers, educators, and users alike. The real challenge lies in balance: using AI as a companion, not a crutch.
Gemini’s ability to reframe a detailed research report as a podcast-style exchange between two synthetic voices isn’t just changing how we consume information. It’s changing how that information is shaped inside our minds. And in that moment—between data and thought—the future of our cognitive independence is being written.
Reports, podcasts, and memory. How AI could reshape our cognitive processes.