NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang believes that as artificial intelligence becomes widespread, the gradual fading of certain basic skills may not necessarily be seen as a problem. In a conversation with journalist Ezra Klein, he stated that the skills people need may change as technology evolves.
The two discussed a study on students' use of AI. The findings mentioned in the conversation showed that while AI helps students complete tasks more quickly, their mastery of the learned skills becomes less solid over time, and their performance on independent exams also declines.
Jensen Huang acknowledged that some fundamental knowledge is beginning to fade from memory. He cited long division, multiplication tables, and square root calculations as examples, questioning whether it truly matters if basic mathematical knowledge is gradually forgotten. When Ezra Klein asked if this was a problem, he replied, "I don't think it matters."
Huang believes that technology reduces the demand for certain old skills, while people will also acquire new ones. He emphasized that important capabilities will remain, but the specific knowledge required may change over time.
He also used himself as an example, stating that he doesn't remember his home address or phone number, and once couldn't immediately recall his zip code when asked at a gas station. In his view, life can proceed normally without memorizing such information. These examples illustrate his perspective on the relationship between knowledge and technology, rather than advocating for stopping the learning of basic mathematics.