YouTube is overrun by “AI Slop”—and it’s not just your imagination

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If your YouTube recommendations have started to look like a graveyard of bizarre, low-effort videos—think narrators who sound half-asleep, zombie facts, and graphics that scream “AI did this”—you’re definitely not alone.

A new study shows that just over one in five videos served to brand-new YouTube users are now “AI slop.” That’s industry slang for content made by computers that’s designed to rack up clicks rather than deliver anything useful or remotely human.

According to Kapwing, which ran the numbers, AI-generated content has become disturbingly common on fresh YouTube accounts. Their deep-dive pulled a random sample of 500 videos recommended to new viewers.

The results: 104 of those videos—21 percent—were entirely AI-generated. Another 33 percent fit into the “brainrot” bucket, meaning generic, copy-paste content that exists purely to exploit the algorithm.

ZDNet corroborates this trend, calling out the rise of careless, AI-backed video spam now flooding user feeds.

The scale of the problem is jaw-dropping. As first reported by The Guardian, these channels aren’t just cluttering up the space for fun—they’re making serious money.

By churning out endless clips about everything from “shocking animal facts” to recycled gaming hacks, AI slop factories are pocketing an estimated $117 million in annual ad revenue.

That’s not a typo: $117 million, fueled by millions of mostly-unwitting clicks and endless algorithmic recommendations.

So where does all this digital garbage come from? As Kapwing explains, a mix of advanced text-to-video, AI voiceover, and image generators enables content farms to pump out hundreds of these videos a day. No human oversight needed—just set the bots loose and let the cash roll in.

Facing criticism, YouTube says it’s now cracking down on low-quality AI content and shoring up “authenticity.” Fighting this digital flood is like bailing out a leaky boat with a thimble.

For anyone hoping to find genuine creators in the avalanche, your best bet is to sharpen your fake-spotting radar and steer clear of the “slop.”

Kevin Raposo

Kevin is KnowTechie's founder and executive editor. With over 15 years of blogging experience in the tech industry, Kevin has transformed what was once a passion project into a full-blown tech news publication. Shoot him an email at kevin@knowtechie.com.