Slopacalypse Now

AI doomers love to obsess over two scenarios: clankers taking our jobs or rogue AI committing atrocities. But I think they’re missing the scarier, more immediate threat. AI is about to fry our brains in ways we aren’t prepared for.

Here’s a very plausible scenario people have been discussing. OpenAI has Sora, which is essentially a TikTok feed of entirely AI-generated videos. Right now, I believe engagement is lacking because the videos look uncanny and the algorithm isn’t TikTok-grade yet. But imagine a future where both the model and the recommendation system evolve dramatically. A future where you can’t tell synthetic video from real, and the algorithm can describe the next 100 videos that would yield the maximum amount of screen time. At the current pace of progress, this isn’t hard to believe.

At some point, all this progress could converge into an app that understands your psychology and generates unlimited content on the fly. No creators, just raw model output straight to your timeline. Imagine a feed of custom-tailored videos that pull exactly the right dopamine strings: a mix of AI-generated sports highlights, viral trends, and comedy skits, all perfectly paced to hijack your brain and maximize your screen time. This is procedurally generated addiction.

We already have an attention span crisis. We’ve even invented the term “brain rot,” which sounds funny until you actually think about it. Everyone knows social media platforms harvest our attention for ad dollars, and most companies don’t care much about the consequences. There’s no solution for that yet, and there’s a final boss on the horizon. You can still manage your life with TikTok, but an automatic AI-generated dopamine rollercoaster? This is custom-synthesized hardcore substance for your eyeballs.

People talk about productivity gains from AI, meaning at some point you’ll need to work less, and suddenly you’ll have more free time to fill. For most people, that time is going straight into the algorithmic meat grinder.

If you’re one of those believers who think people don’t like AI-generated content, I hate to disappoint you. I just watched an interview with the creator of those short drama apps. They have the main app, My Drama, and they’ve recently launched a new one with AI-generated dramas. You’d expect it to bomb compared to their real shows. Well, engagement is on par. So either people can’t tell it’s AI, or they don’t care. I don’t mind people enjoying AI-generated content. You do you. What concerns me is that when combined with an algorithm, it can obliterate people’s brains.

I don’t think pauses or regulations are the solution. But even decels and regulators, who love to restrict and ban, aren’t talking much about this. Guess I’m writing this to highlight a potential edge case. So let me be the local madman and warn you that Slopocalypse is nigh, and right now someone is writing the unholy code to bring forth the Antichrist.