A Curious and Creative Mind Strengthens the Bond With Artificial Intelligence

Having an open and curious mind — beyond mere technical expertise — is key to establishing a productive and cooperative relationship with artificial intelligence. The bond between humans and machines, researchers say, proves most effective when the human partner possesses traits such as mental openness and flexibility, qualities commonly found in profiles like researchers and philosophers.

This is the conclusion put forward by scientists from Mnesys, Italy's and Europe's largest neuroscience research program, drawing on the most recent studies examining the dialogue between different forms of human intelligence and artificial intelligence. The topic serves as the central theme of Brain Week, running from today through March 22.

Many scientists affiliated with the program — initially funded through Italy's National Recovery and Resilience Plan and set to continue through the development of an innovation hub and research services center — have studied how the brain functions and how its plasticity can become an asset in interaction with AI.

New findings indicate that the forms of human intelligence most useful for maximizing interaction with AI are creativity, critical thinking, and conversational intelligence. Certain personality traits, researchers are discovering, also favor synergy between humans and artificial intelligence. Notably, those who achieve the best results are not necessarily technical specialists, but rather individuals with open, curious, and flexible minds — such as philosophers or researchers.

"In the era of artificial intelligence, hybrid intelligence — the result of interaction between human and artificial intelligence — represents a historic step destined to enhance the capabilities of the human brain," explained Antonio Uccelli, scientific coordinator of Mnesys, professor of neurology at the University of Genoa, and scientific director of IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino. "But the development of this shift also depends on personality traits that influence the relationship with AI," he added.

Uccelli cited a recent Johns Hopkins University study showing that performance improves when the human-machine pairing is well-balanced in terms of personality traits. In general, those with open and curious minds interact more effectively with artificial intelligence.

However, passively accepting AI-generated solutions carries risks of its own. "If we simply accept its answers, we run the risk of losing the ability to develop innovative ideas," warned Sergio Martinoia, professor of bioengineering at the University of Genoa and coordinator of the Mnesys scientific committee.

A study from Nanjing University and a recent meta-analysis from the University of Munich both show that collaborating with generative AI can improve creative output, but may also risk reducing the diversity of ideas. It is therefore essential, Martinoia stressed, to cultivate personal creativity so that AI acts as a kind of "muse" that amplifies possible ideas. "Knowing its limitations means being able to evaluate when to trust its guidance and when not to — verifying sources directly, for example," he added.

Research on human-AI interaction further shows that AI performs best when users know how to ask good questions, explore hypotheses, and sustain interactive reasoning. "These are characteristics typical of those who are not limited to technical competencies, such as researchers or philosophers," observed Enrico Castanini, president of Mnesys.

The Mnesys program itself, Castanini concluded, stands as an example of this synergy: the dialogue among scientists, supercomputers, and artificial intelligence has made it possible to analyze enormous volumes of data and expand knowledge of the nervous system as never before. The publication of more than 1,600 studies on the brain stands as evidence of the potential of hybrid intelligence — born from the encounter between human and artificial intelligence — to meet the knowledge challenges of the future.