Why the ADHD brain is a perfect pairing for AI

In 2013, when Meredith O’Connor was 16, the music video for her debut single “Celebrity” went viral. Afterward, she channeled her own stardom into championing childhood mental health: As a hyperactive kid, O’Connor says she was often the subject of bullying, and when her music career gave her a platform, she was eager to use it to advocate on behalf of other victims.

“I knew my fan base was younger, but I didn’t know how many people would resonate with mental health challenges,” she says. “I realized there were millions of gifted people that are being marginalized, and that’s when I really wanted to start the mental health study.”  

Since blowing up YouTube over a decade ago, O’Connor earned a master’s degree in mental health counseling and cofounded the Mental Health Counseling Services of Manhattan in 2024. In working closely with public schools, O’Connor says she was struck by the many ways in which standardized tests disadvantage neurodivergent students. “That observation led me to speak directly with leaders across law, advisory firms, and business about how hiring and evaluation systems might evolve in an AI economy.”

O’Connor explains that the more she spoke with AmLaw 20 firms and Fortune 500 executives, the more she realized that the kinds of skills they desired from graduates were not the skills that were measured and rewarded on standardized tests. That’s especially true for those like herself with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), who have many natural advantages, but often struggle with memorization and sustaining focus.

“Before age 23, the ADHD brain is gifted in many things. But one of the areas of slower development is executive function,” she says, explaining that the limitation affects short-term memory, concentration, and impulse control. “By the time [those with ADHD] are 18, you’ll have taken all these aptitude tests that are studying parts of the brain that have not developed yet.”

Those with ADHD, however, often excel in areas like abstract thinking, creative problem-solving, resilience, and empathy—all of which are seeing heightened value by employers in the age of artificial intelligence.

“It’s better than humans at many of the tasks that people who are neurodivergent struggle with,” O’Connor says. “Skills that are aligned with being an entrepreneur, skills that align with communication, skills that align with problem-solving—those are the things that AI can’t do better than humans yet.”

People with ADHD often demonstrate certain natural strengths and challenges. By sheer coincidence, many of the challenges can now be mitigated using AI tools. And at the same time, many of the ADHD advantages—like creative problem-solving, abstract thinking, and intuition—are seen as increasingly valuable in an AI-enabled world.

AI Excels Where ADHD-ers Often Fall Short

Those with ADHD often struggle with routine processes, time management, and processing large volumes of information. But AI tools are proving effective in helping them overcome those gaps.

Rather than sitting still and paying attention for long periods in an academic lecture or a meeting, for example, AI software can now record that information, transcribe it, and highlight key points in a more condensed format.

“Traditional environments are not designed for them; they are designed for the neurotypical person. And I think AI can help level the playing field,” says Rebecca Koniahgari, the founder of Bryge AI, a tool that helps neurotypical people better communicate with ADHD-ers (or “bridge the gap,” the inspiration for the product’s name).

The New York-based engineer says she developed the product to better communicate with colleagues and friends who have been diagnosed with the condition. Instead of asking people with ADHD to adapt their communication style, Bryge AI is intended to be used by those who “love, live, or work with” someone who has ADHD. 

“I’m neurotypical, and the burden of communication has always been on the other person [with ADHD], so let’s meet them halfway,” Koniahgari says.  

The online app allows users to input a message and then “translates” it into a more ADHD-friendly structure that emphasizes clarity, brevity, and emotional intelligence—flagging potential issues, such as language, that might trigger anxiety, lack clarity, or use negative framing. After launching the prototype she developed at a hackathon event hosted by AI coding platform Bolt, Koniahgari was awarded a silver medal for Bryge AI at the 2025 Stevie Awards for Women in Business.

Now, Koniahgari says she’s looking to integrate the technology into other AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude AI, and eventually into workplace communication platforms like Slack, to make it even more accessible and widely available.

ADHD-ers Often Excel Where AI Falls Short

Just as the technology can help fill the gaps where ADHD-ers struggle the most, ADHD-ers seem well positioned to fill the gaps where the technology often struggles, like with creative problem-solving, out-of-the-box thinking, and adaptability.

According to a recent study conducted by researchers at Drexel University, those with ADHD tend to solve problems using insight rather than analytical skills. Instead of working out problems in steps, their brains often make subconscious connections that result in an “aha” moment of insight.

“We hypothesized that people who have stronger ADHD symptoms would solve more of these puzzles with an a-ha moment, with insight, and that turned out to be true,” explains John Kounios, a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Drexel University, and one of the paper’s coauthors. 

“The thing that was surprising—although, in retrospect, it makes perfect sense—is that the people who solved the most puzzles were the ones who were lowest in ADHD symptoms and [who were] highest in ADHD symptoms.”

The study asked participants a series of questions that are commonly used to screen for ADHD symptoms, and only included participants who had not been diagnosed with, or weren’t taking medication for, a cognitive disorder. Kounios explains that those who demonstrate more ADHD symptoms excel at solving problems using insight, those with the fewest symptoms also tend to excel by using analytical reasoning, while those in the middle aren’t particularly good at either.

“The chatbots do not do this kind of spontaneous cognition that humans do, so human creativity sets the agenda,” Kounios says. “What people who have ADHD are good at is coming up with solutions to problems that no one knew they had.”

A Team Effort Between the Neurotypical, Neurodivergent, and AI

Kounios warns, however, that like other technology tools, there is a fine line between assistance and distraction—and AI could pose challenges to those who are already struggling to maintain focus.

“It would require the person with ADHD to have the discipline to use chatbots in [a productive] way,” he says. “Certainly, it can be a rabbit hole that people can fall into.”

That is why Kounios believes that people can best leverage their unique strengths and limit their natural challenges when they solve problems using the latest AI tools alongside teammates who think differently.

“There’s research literature on the benefits of having sort of diverse teams,” he says. “You want to have some people who are older and some people who are younger . . . male and female . . . all kinds of different people.” Kounios adds that similar research is proving the same for neurodiversity. 

“I think it’s also good to have a mixture of cognitive profiles—some people who are going to be more scattered, less focused, maybe more creative, along with people who are much more analytical, focused, and systematic.”

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