The new form of Imposter Syndrome

Self-doubt and overthinking are often associated with imposter syndrome which can be described as the ongoing belief that accomplishments are undeserved and that, sooner or later, others may discover that a person is not as capable as they appear.
But as Artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in the way people work and create, could AI be creating new conditions in which these feelings emerge?
AI introduces a new version of a familiar doubt. Instead of questioning whether an achievement was deserved because of luck or external circumstances, the question can now become whether that achievement is deserved because a machine helped to achieve it.
The better the result, the more complicated the feeling can become: “If AI helped produce something that could not have been produced alone, does that make the person less capable?”. The tool that makes people more productive can, paradoxically, make them feel less competent.
Once AI becomes part of the process, another question can quickly follow: “Did I really do this?” This question is not simply about who deserves credit; it can challenge how people see themselves professionally. And that is where AI intersects with imposter syndrome.
But the doubt does not always come from within. Sometimes, it comes from how others perceive an achievement. Once people know AI was involved, they may unconsciously assign less value to the human contribution.
The result can quickly become “AI-generated” rather than an achievement shaped by a person who directed, refined, questioned and ultimately decided what was worth keeping. When the outside world begins to question that contribution, it can reinforce the doubts an individual may already have about their own abilities.
This raises another question: If AI helped achieve something meaningful, should that success be celebrated any differently from other achievements? Or should the ability to use a new tool effectively be recognised as part of the achievement itself? If the result reflects a person's ideas and judgement, why should the involvement of AI automatically make the achievement feel less theirs?
AI is in many ways, forcing people into this uncomfortable learning process. Society is repeatedly told that AI will not necessarily replace people, but that people who know how to use AI may replace those who do not. If learning to use these tools is becoming part of professional development, why do people sometimes underestimate their achievements precisely when they begin using them?
This becomes even more complicated when “AI-generated” or “AI-assisted” work is labelled as such. Transparency is important, but could an “AI-assisted” label unintentionally become a reason to value the work less, even when the quality is good? Perhaps the question should not simply be whether AI was involved, but how it was involved and what the human contributed to the final result.
Maybe a new form of imposter feeling is emerging around AI, not because AI proves that people are less capable, but because it can make the machine's contribution visible while the human contribution becomes easier to overlook.
The pressure can therefore come from both directions. From within, as individuals question whether an achievement is truly theirs, and from outside, when others underestimate what they brought to the process.
Yet perhaps this discomfort should not always be viewed negatively. Sometimes, the feeling of not knowing enough can encourage people to learn more, explore further and keep questioning.
As knowledge grows, so does the awareness of how much more there is to learn. The important question is whether that feeling motivates improvement or instead convinces a person that their achievements are undeserved.
But if AI can amplify our doubts about what we are capable of, perhaps it can also expand the possibilities of what we can achieve.
AI, with probability at its core, has left humans with a new set of possibilities to explore and to thrive. Perhaps the true value of using AI is not in questioning whether the achievement is truly human, but in recognising how technology can serve humanity and expand what it is capable of achieving.