By Gaia Giordani. Cover image: Monet pizza garden is a paradise for pizza lovers, AI artwork made with Deep Dream Generator.

“Slop” content is misleading AI-generated content (usually catchy visuals or fake news) that can appear genuine or very creative (depending on whether it’s the obvious or sneaky type) while spreading misinformation. 
It is the perfect spam in the original meaning of the term: spreadable canned spiced ham, a symbol of cheap, tasteless junk food that many people actually like or are not “taste-educated” enough to recognise as junk.
Besides the gross food analogy, it’s also a toxic agent in a really polluted digital environment. Boosted and sped up by AI, Slop is a very specific breed of junk content that poisons the Internet, tricks people and propagates deceits.

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Un post condiviso da Grumpy Old Geeks (@grumpyoldgeeks)

Viral examples of slop content

One of the most viral examples of Slop on the internet is Shrimp Jesus, a surreal AI-generated depiction of Jesus merged with shrimps. There is obvious Slop, like an AI-generated plantation of pizza trees where pepperoni slices are dripping mozzarella from the branches. And sneaky Slop. Seeing the sneaky type for the first time is always a shock for the viewer, who suddenly realises it is what it is: a marvellous tropical villa with an anti-gravity pool that defies the laws of physics, the portrait of a beautiful three-legged model, an impossible design stool. You can feel something’s off, then you know.

If you know, you know (IYKYK)

If you know, you know. But most of the time, you are totally unaware that you are staring, laughing or commenting on Slop. Most of the time, our encounters with Slop are casual, and they cross our minds without us knowing. On average, we spend 6 hours a day consuming digital content, and about 15% of news and 30% of general content is generated by bots or AI. 

Because of our lack of attention or deep understanding of the content, Slop can take root in our memory and plant fake concepts in our minds. We often scroll without really paying attention to what we see, without reading the whole story, or without clicking or swiping or checking the source. 
This shallow consumption of content is like eating at a buffet where some undercover Slop tastes exactly like cherries or cake; you’ll pick at small pieces of it and feel nauseated very soon. Then we think again about those delicious cherries that were not actual fruit or food at all, just like Shrimp Jesus.

The Dead Internet theory

Bots and AI generate a part of the Internet’s content. Google knows, and social media platforms know, too, but most people don’t have a clue: not only do they not know, but they are incapable of recognising fake content or AI-generated artefacts. 

The Dead Internet theory suggests that most online content is not human-generated. It’s a conspiracy theory that contains a bit of truth. AI is speeding up the content creation process, allowing for massive content production. Still, search engines and algorithms have dammed this wave by pushing back, hiding or penalising poor content, allowing great pieces of content to emerge on the surface of feeds and SERP. Also, user ratings (like Reddit’s upvote/downvote) provide great feedback by users to make good content rise and shine.
Unfortunately, mainstream Internet users seem to love Slop. They adore it. Check the comments, and you’ll find enthusiastic reactions to any obvious Slop.
Not only content can be fake. About 60% of internet traffic is generated by bots, while “click farms” are generating a massive amount of fake engagement. Are we living in a dystopia?

How to stem the advance of Slop

Don’t engage with it so it doesn’t go viral. Avoid commenting at all. If you do, you can disclose to unaware users that it’s AI-generated junk or fake, also providing a debunking trustworthy source. Resist the urge to propagate Slop because it’s funny (most of it is), keeping in mind that it can poison someone’s mind. 

Have fun creating your own Slop by telling the viewers it’s AI-generated and checking the AI disclaimer on the platform where available: many social media companies like Meta and Google have recently introduced the AI watermark and detector to keep Slop at bay.

All images in this article are AI artworks made with Deep Dream Generator