# Position: AI as Part of Self -- Extending the Mind Requires Cognitive Co-Regulation

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.16197 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.16197/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 15 May 2026.

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [SCAN: A Decision-Making Framework for Effective Task Allocation with Generative AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.15601/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

This position paper argues that safety and alignment cannot be achieved by constraining an external system: they must emerge from the co-regulatory design of the human--AI cognitive system as a whole ("AI as Part of Self"). Contemporary AI increasingly participates in attention allocation, reasoning, synthesis, and decision-making, shaping the very cognitive processes through which humans form beliefs, make decisions, and constitute their sense of self. Humans and AI occupy complementary epistemic roles under mutual constraint, forming a symbiotic cognitive unit whose co-regulation -- not the external control of either party alone -- is the proper locus of alignment. We identify the risks of unstructured delegation: deskilling, automation bias, transfer of epistemic authority, and oracle-style centralization of knowledge. Drawing on System~0 cognition theory, we further show that AI operates prior to conscious deliberation, shaping the pre-attentive infrastructures through which agency and trust are negotiated -- a level that conventional oversight cannot reach. We conclude with design principles for cognitive co-regulation addressed to ML engineers and governance bodies. The goal of this work is to guide human cognition toward resilience and epistemic agency at the foundation of human selfhood.