What is slop, this new phenomenon that is invading and threatening the Internet ?

© Unsplash/Resume Genius

In recent years, content generated by artificial intelligence on the Internet has been multiplying. Whether it is text, images or videos, the progress of AI is dazzling. For better or for worse. While artificial intelligence can be a very good tool, provided it is used properly and intelligently, it can quickly become a real scourge.

On the Internet, AI-generated content is therefore legion, and is now part of our daily lives. When it is of poor quality, there is nothing more infuriating. Unfortunately, these are the ones that are increasingly numerous on the web. And it has a name: slop.

Slop, or the new digital pollution

To put it simply, slop is the term used to describe all mediocre content generated by artificial intelligence. We are talking about the doctored images that abound on the Internet, the fake news spread on social networks or even online articles generated in a stupid and mean way. All bad AI-generated content can be labeled as slop. As The Guardian explains, slop is intended to deceive the Internet user, making him believe that the content was generated by a human (there must be doubt), to generate advertising revenue and to direct the attention of search engines. In short, it is a real parasite!

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Screenshot from Facebook © Presse-citron

If the term may seem funny, it originally refers to the mud that accumulates at the bottom of the tanks of oil tankers. Ultimately, that says a lot and we can easily understand the connection between the origin and current use of the term. After several months of being used on online forums and then social media, the term “slop” has reallypopularized in May 2024. British programmer Simon Willison does not hesitate to talk about slop. Because giving it a name is better to protect yourself from it. By having a specific word to designate it, it is easier to talk about it and therefore to raise awareness among the general public of the dangers it represents.

The term “spam” has had a very similar past. It took the term becoming generalized for everyone to realize the harmfulness of these fraudulent and unwanted messages. So, it is essential to make people understand that generating and publishing unedited AI-generated content is bad behavior”.

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