Slop: The New Name for Unwanted AI-Generated Content

One of the key challenges is that some individuals struggle to differentiate between "slop" and trustworthy content. This often leads to confusion, as people may not recognize the low-quality or misleading nature of AI-generated material (Shutterstock).

You might not be fully aware of the term Slop in relation to artificial intelligence (AI), but you’ve probably encountered it. Slop refers to content generated by AI that is considered undesirable, low-quality, or irrelevant. This concept has gained traction on social media, in art, books, and even search engine results.

Have you ever seen Google suggest something odd, like adding non-toxic glue to make cheese stick to pizza? That’s an example of slop. Similarly, a cheap digital book that looks like what you were searching for but isn’t quite right, or random Facebook posts that seem to appear out of nowhere, can also be classified as slop.

The term has gained more attention in recent months, especially after Google integrated its AI model Gemini into its search results in the United States. Instead of directing users to external links, the service tries to answer queries directly by providing an AI-generated summary at the top of the search results.

The Concept of "Slop"

Slop is a relatively new term that refers to AI-generated content that meets one or more criteria, such as being unwanted, poorly made, low-quality, or filled with errors. The term first appeared on the platform X (formerly Twitter) and was explained by open-source developer Simon Willison, who described it as content produced without thought for people who didn’t ask for it.

Slop has spread due to its association with promotional campaigns and ads that flood platforms to generate profit. It can also be linked to the creation of AI-generated images and content designed to attract a large number of interactions.

Additionally, the term is connected to the Dead Internet Theory, which suggests that much of today’s internet is controlled by bots and AI tools that constantly churn out content, images, videos, and text that gain thousands of likes and comments. Despite the seeming popularity, it’s unlikely that many real humans are interacting with this content. Instead, bots inflate the numbers, pushing AI-generated material to ordinary users, leading to platforms being overrun with fake, uninspired content.

The term "slop" has gained more traction in recent months, especially after Google integrated its advanced Gemini model into search results in the United States (Shutterstock).

Don’t Fall into the Trap

One challenge is that some people struggle to distinguish between slop and trustworthy content. When AI provides low-quality or out-of-context information, it can be hard to spot the mistakes.

Sometimes, AI can be misled by sarcastic or deliberately false data pulled from websites or other sources, or it might be biased based on the training data it was fed. It can also be difficult to verify whether an AI-generated image or video is fake, and it’s not always clear how AI-generated text is sourced.

To avoid these pitfalls, it’s important to ensure that information provided by AI models like ChatGPT is up-to-date and sourced from reliable websites or datasets.

How to Tell Real Content from "Slop"

Fortunately, the requirements for trustworthy content are well-defined, making it easier to avoid slop. Here are some key points to ensure high-quality content:

Source Verification: Check if the content comes from a reputable academic journal, official organization, or a field expert.
External Links: Good content typically includes several external links to validate the information presented.
Accuracy: Reliable content should be free of grammatical errors, well-structured, and formatted correctly.
Depth: Avoid shallow information; good content should include deep analysis and be free from bias.
Fact-Checking: Use fact-checking websites like Snopes to confirm the credibility of controversial claims.
Design and Presentation: High-quality content features well-chosen titles, relevant images, and minimal intrusive ads.

The term "slop" doesn't refer to a single type of error but manifests in various forms and formats, all of which result in low-quality content (Shutterstock).

Types of "Slop"

Slop takes many forms, leading to poor-quality content across different platforms. It’s not limited to a single site but can be found across social media platforms like Facebook, X, and TikTok. Here are the most common forms:

Disorganized Data: Inaccurate information without reliable sources, or text filled with shallow, repetitive ideas lacking depth.
Low-Quality Images: AI-generated images that are unrealistic or simply bad in content.
Lack of Human Creativity: Content that relies on outdated and repetitive AI methods, lacking fresh innovation.
Biased Ads: Poor-quality advertisements designed to promote a product and increase likes, often for financial gain.
Unrealistic Scenarios: Content that creates misleading or bizarre behaviors.
Strange Product Descriptions: These negatively affect marketing by confusing or misleading consumers.
Overcrowded AI-Generated Posts: The flood of AI-generated posts on social media reduces the reach of useful content.

Strategies to Handle "Slop"

AI-generated mistakes are not just technical annoyances; they present multi-faceted challenges with ethical, social, and even existential consequences. Here are some strategies that tech organizations should adopt to combat slop:

Data Preparation: Broaden the data pool to include diverse groups and eliminate errors to improve content quality.
Robust Models: Build strong AI models by verifying sources and ensuring information comes from trustworthy websites.
Monitoring and Maintenance: Close monitoring of data input and output can help detect any issues. Regular evaluation can identify biases and remove them.
AI Development: Develop teams with diverse perspectives to study data from different angles. Use comprehensive datasets that represent the majority of users.
Human-AI Collaboration: The combination of human intelligence with AI will yield higher-quality content. Human oversight can resolve AI issues and elevate the overall quality of content.
User Feedback Channels: Establish channels for users to report errors, leading to faster problem-solving.
Adding a Human Touch: Including real-life stories adds a personal touch to content. Writer Cory Doctorow recently discussed his theory of "humanization," noting that the race for profit can weaken quality and user experience.
Interactive Media: Introduce creative, exclusive content with a strong focus on interactivity.

Slop: The New Name for Unwanted AI-Generated Content