What's the Deal with AI Slop?

Ever scroll through your feed and see something that just feels … off? That's AI slop: the internet's junk food i.e. low-quality, nonsensical content generated by Artificial Intelligence.

Think weird images, repetitive text, and stuff that's just plain wrong. AI slop comes from AI scraping tons of data, without any real person checking if it makes sense. IMHO it's the result of hallucinations by AI. Case in point: Shrimp Jesus which is one of the least disturbing ones online. ICYMI, I've linked a Forbes article in the comments. Between us, I prefer Shrimp Tempura (photo in this article's header) than Shrimp Jesus!

Thankfully, because I deleted Facebook and Instagram accounts this year (and Tiktok the year before), I was never exposed to the extremely disturbing images and videos on these platforms. I've heard about it being more widespread because I have friends asking me "what's up with this cr@p on Social Media these days?".

Slop Spotted: Examples in the Wild

Melting Faces: Pictures where people look like they're melting, with eyes in the wrong place
Impossible Objects: Images of things that can't exist in real life, like stairs that go nowhere
Generic Robot Text: Articles that repeat the same thing over and over, or get simple facts wrong
Text vs. Image Fail: Pictures that don't match the words next to them, like a cat labeled as a dog
AI Comments: comments that are generic and repetitive

Level Up Your Online Defense: How to Dodge the Slop

Okay, so the internet's a bit of a mess right now. But don't panic! Here's how to keep your brain from getting slop-logged:

Curate Your Sources: Stick to news sites and experts you trust. Don't believe everything you see on random blogs
Think Critically: Ask yourself, "Does this make sense?" If it sounds too weird to be true, it probably is
Look for Human Touch: Follow creators who are real people, not robots. Real people put real effort into their content
Reverse Image Search: If an image looks sketchy, use Google Lens or TinEye to see where it came from
Watch Out for Robot Language: If an article sounds like it was written by a robot, it probably was. Look for unique voices
Support Real Creators: Like, share, and comment on stuff made by actual humans. This helps good content rise to the top
Limit high volume platforms: Consider limiting your time on platforms that are known for prioritizing quantity over quality

Reclaiming the Digital Space

The internet's still awesome, but we need to be smart about what we see there. By being aware of AI slop and using these tips, we can keep our feeds clean and support the humans who make the internet great. Let's keep the internet real.

Repost to help your network avoid AI slop. Knowledge is power!

Feed Full of Fake? How to Deal with AI Slop Guide

IDK about you, but I prefer shrimp tempura to Shrimp Jesus! Learn about the kinds of AI slop and how to protect yourself online from this content

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