Not only are more than half of the articles published on the web created by AI, but more than 21% of YouTube videos served to new users are of “low AI-generated quality.” This is what the new report from the Kapwing company reveals.
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For the uninitiated, low-quality degenerative content, AI Slop, is produced by generative artificial intelligence without or with minimal human intervention, which spreads massively in the digital space, often to the detriment of other content.
The large-scale exploitation of generative artificial intelligence technologies tends to saturate the Web and social media with degenerative content likely to deceive users and devalue the legitimate uses of artificial intelligence, we can read on the Grand Dictionnaire terminologique.
Digital stupidity
Beyond generating views and subscriptions or influencing political opinion, the proliferation of degenerative content on YouTube is difficult to avoid.
Most subscribers to degenerative content channels on YouTube
Kapwing
In an experiment conducted by Kapwing using a YouTube Shorts algorithm, the company noted 21% degenerative content produced by AI, while 33% fell into the category of “mindlessness” or digital mindlessness.
South Korea, Pakistan and the United States in the top 3
Kapwing also looked at the global consumption of low-quality AI-generated content. Based on views alone, South Korea comes out on top: its 11 trending AI channels total more than 8.45 billion views. Pakistan comes second with 5.34 billion views, while the United States is third with 3.39 billion.
The most viewed degenerative content channels on YouTube
Kapwing
And it works!
The Three Minutes Wisdom channel, which accounts for nearly a quarter of the country’s views, is estimated to generate about $4 million a year from advertising revenue.
@3mWisdom
In terms of subscriptions to these channels, the United States also ranks third. With 14.4 million subscribers, the country is just behind Egypt (17.9 million) and Spain (20.22 million), which occupies first place.
Indian channel Bandar Apna Dost is the most watched of all AI-powered channels, with 2.07 billion views. It also generates the most revenue, with around $4.25 million per year.
Bandar Apna Dost
Of course, this isn’t just about YouTube.
Social media, online articles, images… Much of what was once almost entirely the work of humans is now generated by AI. It is therefore not surprising that “ slop » is the word of the year according to Merriam-Webster.
Kapwing
Degenerative content channels with the highest number of subscribers, by country
Kapwing
Degenerative content channels with the highest number of views, by country
