In recent years, the content generated by artificial intelligence on the Internet have multiplied. Whether it is a question of texts, images or videos, the progress of AI is dazzling. For the better, as for the worst. If artificial intelligence can be a very good tool, provided it is properly and intelligently used, it can quickly become a real scourge.
On the Internet, the content generated by AI are therefore legion, and are now part of our daily life. When they are of poor quality, there is nothing more enhancing. Unfortunately, they are more and more numerous on the web. And that has a name: the slop.
Slop, or new digital pollution
To put it simply, The slop is the term used to qualify all the mediocre content generated by artificial intelligence. We are talking about the rigged images that swarm on the internet, fake news spread on social networks or online articles generated in a stupid and nasty manner. All the bad content generated by AI can be pointed out as a slop. As explained The Guardianthe slop is doomed to deceive the internet user, making him believe that the content has been generated by a human (it is necessary that doubt remains), to generate advertising revenues and to orient the attention of search engines. In short, it is a real parasite!
If the term can smile, it originally designates the mud which features in the depths of tanks of petroleum ships. Finally, this says a lot and we can easily understand the rapprochement between the origin and the current use of the term. After several months to be used on online forums, then social networks, the term “slop” has Really Popularized in May 2024. The British programmer Simon Willison does not hesitate to speak of the slop. Because to give it a name is better to preserve it. By having a specific word to designate it, it is easier to talk about it and therefore to educate the general public about the dangers it represents.
The term “spam” has experienced a very similar past. The term had to be widespread so that everyone has the harmfulness of these fraudulent and unwanted messages. Thus, it is essential to Make people understand that generating and publishing unvunk content generated by AI is bad behavior ”.
