A (1:44)

Well, that's a pretty good way to describe the flood of poorly written articles, fake reviews, and meaningless AI videos filling up our social media feeds.

B (1:54)

And it's starting to cause real problems for social media users, for businesses, and even for search engines.

A (2:02)

Sounds like a great topic for today's show.

B (2:04)

And that is exactly what we are going to report on.

A (2:08)

So let's get to it.

B (2:09)

Yes, let's get D2B down to business with AI slop. How? Low quality content is flooding the Internet.

A (2:25)

So AI Slop is the flood of low quality AI generated content that has taken over a huge part of the Internet, or at least social media. Am I understanding that right?

B (2:37)

Yes, that is a good way of defining it. AISLOP includes misleading articles, product reviews and advertisements, not to mention bizarre video clips of people in unbelievable situations. All generated with AI, all created with AI with little or no human oversight.

A (2:59)

I've seen some crazy stuff on YouTube and in my Facebook feed.

B (3:02)

Have you seen those advertisements for Tai chi for men over 50?

A (3:08)

Tai Chi, the Chinese martial arts. Kind of like Aikido.

B (3:11)

They're somewhat similar, yes.

A (3:14)

No, I don't think I have.

B (3:15)

Well, this ad features a shirtless older Asian man with like 0% body fat, a six pack of abs and bulging muscles. In the ad, this clearly AI generated Tai Chi master explains how men over 50 can get into shape by simply doing Tai chi for seven minutes a day.

A (3:37)

Oh my. Obviously not true.

B (3:40)

It's an incredibly bad ad, all generated by AI But I bet a lot

A (3:45)

of people fall for it.

B (3:46)

Oh, I'm sure many did. According to a recent report in the Guardian, YouTube is dealing with a massive rise in AI generated videos. Just like that. Strange, unrealistic content created in bulk by automated systems.

A (4:03)

And even though they are not real, they still show up in people's feeds.

B (4:07)

And that is the problem. Platforms like YouTube are struggling to tell the difference between what is real, what's helpful, and what is pure AI slop.

A (4:19)

So the content might look legitimate, but in fact it's either incorrect or completely fabricated information.

B (4:26)

That's another big issue with AI slop fabricated information. It is especially harmful when it comes to news. And the way it can mimic real journalism.

A (4:38)

How does it do that?

B (4:40)

It uses the same tone, the same structure, even the same vocabulary used in proper reporting. But the information, the facts just don't hold up.

A (4:51)

It is literally fake news.

B (4:54)

And yet another big area where AI slop is spreading is. Is customer reviews.

A (4:58)

Product reviews. You mean the comments people leave online after they buy something?

B (5:03)

Exactly. On retailer websites like Amazon and Google, customers post reviews on their shopping experience. You know, stuff like whether the product worked for them, whether it arrived on time, whether it matched the description, things like that.

A (5:20)

Reviews are supposed to help other shoppers make informed decisions. I always check customer reviews before I

B (5:26)

buy anything, and so does almost everyone else. Research shows that about 95% of consumers depend on online reviews before they buy a product or service.

A (5:39)

95%. That's almost everyone.

B (5:42)

It is. And that's what makes the rise of AI generated reviews so problematic. A recent study of roughly 30,000 reviews on Amazon found that nearly 5% of them were written by AI. And 75% of those AI reviews were five star reviews.

A (6:06)

So customers might think a product is amazing, when really the glowing reviews were written by AI.

B (6:12)

Precisely. Amazon and Google are implementing automated systems that detect suspicious review patterns. If a product page suddenly fills up with AI style reviews, the listings can get pushed down in the search rankings. In more serious cases, it could even lead to a temporary suspension.

A (6:35)

But why would a retailer want to risk that by making use of AI generated reviews?

B (6:40)

There is one obvious reason. If your product has a lot of Five star reviews. It can help your brand stand out from your competitors.

A (6:50)

Right. Those positive reviews drive traffic to your page, which might help drive sales. I see why that would be tempting to do. But in the end, it is a lose lose situation.

B (7:02)

Bad for shoppers and ultimately bad for businesses.

A (7:07)

What about the workplace? Is this problem showing up inside companies too?

B (7:11)

Very much so. In fact, for B2B businesses, AI slop can be just as damaging, if not more so.

A (7:19)

How does AI slop show up at work?

B (7:22)

It often appears in everyday business documents, emails, internal reports, meeting summaries, slide decks, even strategy proposals. All written quickly by AI.

A (7:35)

That sounds helpful on the surface. That's the promise, isn't it? AI is supposed to save time.

B (7:43)

Well, according to Harvard Business Review, a lot of companies are discovering just the opposite. They describe this problem using a new term, workslop.

A (7:53)

Workslop?

B (7:54)

Yes. It refers to low quality AI generated work content writing that looks professional but is vague, repetitive or slightly inaccurate.

A (8:04)

So it looks polished, but it doesn't actually say very much.

B (8:08)

Exactly. Managers end up spending more time rewriting emails and double checking facts that should have been correct in the first place.

A (8:17)

So instead of saving time, AI is actually creating more work.

B (8:21)

That's right. The Harvard Business Report also points out that employees are often pressured to use AI even when it doesn't add real value. The result is more content, but not better content.

A (8:36)

And I imagine that can be a little risky too.

B (8:39)

More than a little. It is very risky. If decision makers rely on AI generated summaries or reports that contain errors or missing context, those mistakes can influence business

A (8:53)

decisions, especially in areas like finance, operations or strategy.

B (8:58)

In B2B environments, small inaccuracies can have big consequences. And because AI generated writing often sounds confident, people don't always question it as carefully as they should.

A (9:13)

So AI slop inside companies is harder to spot than the obvious nonsense we see on social media.

B (9:19)

That is a good way to put it. It doesn't look ridiculous, it looks acceptable. And that's what makes it so dangerous.

A (9:27)

It comes down to quality, not just speed. A case of speed kills?

B (9:33)

Absolutely. Now, clearly AI can be useful for many office tasks, but without clear standards and human oversight, companies risk producing low quality, ineffective information.

A (9:48)

So we've looked at AI slop on social media, in online shopping, and even inside companies. But just how big is this problem really?

B (9:58)

It's bigger than most people realize. Some recent estimates suggest that more than half of the content online today may already be generated by AI, or at least heavily assisted by it.

A (10:11)

More than half? That's hard to fathom.

B (10:14)

It is hard to believe, but when you think about how easy it's become to generate text, images and videos at scale, it starts to make sense. One person or one company can now produce thousands of pieces of content in a single day.

A (10:32)

Which explains why it suddenly feels like AI content is everywhere.

B (10:36)

And platforms are not designed to slow that down. Their algorithms reward engagement and volume, not necessarily quality. So if AI generated content gets clicks, likes or shares, it gets promoted, even if it is low value or misleading.

A (10:56)

So the system is unintentionally encouraging AI slop.

B (10:59)

That's right. And once that cycle starts, it becomes very hard to reverse. Human created content simply cannot compete with the speed and scale of AI generated material.

A (11:13)

And I suspect it is just going to get worse.

B (11:16)

I'm afraid you are right. Generative AI has become incredibly powerful today. You don't need a team of writers or video editors. A single person can generate articles, images, even realistic videos in minutes.

A (11:32)

Which brings us back to the same theme again. Quality versus quantity.

B (11:37)

Well, I don't know about that exactly. Genai is becoming more and more capable of producing higher quality quality content. As long as there is a human in the loop, someone behind directing the AI as it creates the content, I don't necessarily think it is a bad thing.

A (11:58)

So you see the current situation of AI slop more of a problem to do with not using AI tools properly?

B (12:04)

I do. However, unless platforms, businesses and users address that balance, the flood of AI slop is likely to continue.

A (12:15)

And on that profound insight, I think it's time for us to get D2V down to vocabulary.

B (12:34)

The first item on today's DTV list is the verb to feature. When something features a person or thing, it includes that person or thing as an important or noticeable part of the product or content.

A (12:50)

You often see this word used in the context of marketing, media or product descriptions. It communicates to the customer what is being highlighted or shown prominently.

B (13:01)

In today's report, I talked about a Tai Chi advertisement that featured a shirtless older man who was clearly generated by AI. I was pointing out that this person was the main focus of the ad.

A (13:18)

Oh my goodness. And unsurprisingly, I'm seeing that all the time now. Anyway, in simpler terms, that ad used that character to catch people's attention. Here's another business example. Tesla's newest model, the Highland, features several upgrades for a smoother ride.

B (13:36)

You know, I have never ridden in a Tesla. I need to experience that someday to find out what it is like, really.

A (13:47)

Next up is the expression to do something in bulk. When you do something in bulk, you do it in very large quantities, often

B (13:55)

all at once, right? When you use this expression, it signals volume. Doing something in large quantities or amounts, usually to save time or to lower cost.

A (14:07)

In today's report, Skip explained that AI tools have the ability to create content in bulk, meaning one person or one company can generate thousands of pieces of content in a single day.

B (14:21)

So instead of producing content one piece at a time, it gets produced at scale, a very large amount made in a very short amount of time.

A (14:32)

Can you give us another example of doing something in bulk, Skip?

B (14:36)

Sure. I am currently involved in a textbook project, an EFL communication textbook aimed at Japanese university students.

A (14:46)

Ah, yes, that's right. It seems like you've been working on that for ages.

B (14:51)

Yeah, it feels like it. Anyway, we recently chose the printing company who will print the textbook. Although we don't think we will need more than a few hundred copies in the first year, we decided to print 2,000.

A (15:05)

Wow. Why so many?

B (15:07)

Because the printer is giving us a 20% discount if we print in bulk.

A (15:13)

Ah, of course. The more you print, the more the price per unit is reduced, which is

B (15:19)

a very good reason for doing something in bulk.

A (15:21)

That's a perfect example.

B (15:23)

Thank you. The final word on today's DTV list is the verb to mimic. When something mimics something else, it copies or closely imitates it.

A (15:35)

Mimic often suggests that the imitation looks convincing, even if it isn't genuine or the real thing.

B (15:43)

In the report I said that AI slop can mimic real journalism. It uses the same tone structure, even the same vocabulary as professional reporting, but the facts don't hold up.

A (15:59)

So it looks and sounds like real reporting, but it's not.

B (16:03)

It may actually be false. Definitely unreliable. Can you give us an example using mimic in a business context?

A (16:12)

Well, I immediately think about how Instagram mimicked Snapchat.

B (16:16)

Really? I have never used Snapchat.

A (16:19)

Snapchat was the first social media platform to popularize the story feature. You know posts that disappear after 24 hours?

B (16:28)

Yes, I am familiar with that feature on Instagram.

A (16:31)

Well, Snapchat introduced that feature in 2013 and Instagram mimicked it, launching their own stories feature in 2016, which basically made it a standard for any social media app. Even Facebook has the same feature now.

B (16:46)

Well, you know what they say, Mimic what your competitor does well, then add your own twist to make it unique or special.

A (16:56)

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Would you like to help down to business English Reach more people wanting to improve their business English skills. Follow down to Business English on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Music, Spotify, or any place podcasts are found. Leave a rating and a review and tell everyone how much you enjoy the show. Thank you for the report on AI Slop skit.

B (17:33)

My pleasure, Samantha. I hope you and our listeners found it informative.

A (17:38)

Yes, I certainly did. I'm glad to hear it's not just me who has to deal with AI Slop in my social media feed.

B (17:44)

Don't worry, you're not alone. DTV Members and Apple Podcast Subscribers the bonus down to Vocabulary episode for today's report will be released within the next few days. In that bonus episode, we will be discussing five additional vocabulary items that Samantha and I used in today's report.

A (18:04)

Those words and phrases are flattering, fabricated, tempting to double check, and the idiom to be hard to fathom.

B (18:16)

DTB Members make sure you have copied the Members Only Podcast Feed URL from your Members account page on the D2B website and have pasted it into the podcast app of your choice. That way you won't miss the bonus

A (18:31)

D2D episode and Apple Podcast subscribers. You don't need to do anything. The bonus D2V episode will show up automatically in your podcast feed as soon as it's released.

B (18:44)

And if you're not yet a D2B member or Apple Podcast subscriber but find down to Business English useful in your English studies, do consider supporting the show.

A (18:57)

As a member, you get access to all our Bonus Vocabulary Episodes, Members Only episodes, our interactive audio scripts, as well as access to the complete library of D2B audioscript PDFs.

B (19:11)

To become a D2B member, just visit d2benglish.com membership and sign up today.

A (19:21)

That's D the number 2B English membership.

B (19:27)

Thanks for listening everyone. See you next time.

A (19:30)

Take care. Down to Business English Business News to improve your Business English.