A new study conducted by video editing company Kapwing found that more than one in five videos recommended to new YouTube users are “AI slops.”
AI slop (also simply referred to as slop) refers to digital content created by generative artificial intelligence that particularly introduces low-effort, low-quality content. These AI videos are produced in overwhelming quantities with the goal of increasing views and ad revenue.
In the study, Kapwien evaluated the 15,000 most popular channels on YouTube, including the top 100 channels from each country, and found that 278 channels were made up entirely of AI slop.
Combined, these channels have over 63 billion views and over 221 million subscribers. Leveraging this audience, the channel generated an estimated $117m (£90m) a year.
To measure how content spread on the platform, researchers created new YouTube accounts without any personal preferences or interests. Of the 500 initial recommended videos, 104 were entirely AI-generated, and about a third fell into the broader category of Brainrot content, which also turns out to be a type of low-quality, meaningless AI-generated content.
These findings point to a rapidly growing ecosystem of algorithm-driven content across social media platforms, including YouTube.
of guardian YouTube reported earlier this year that despite YouTube's efforts to curb “inauthentic content,” about 10% of its fastest-growing channels are based entirely on AI developments.
Interestingly, many of the largest AI slop channels attract a global audience. In Spain, a trending AI channel has gained 20 million followers, while similar channels with millions of subscribers exist in the US, Egypt, Brazil and India.
Analysts say AI slop's popularity stems from its absurdity, lack of narrative complexity, and algorithmic amplification. While social media platforms claim to prioritize quality content, researchers argue that the reach of these AI-slop channels shows how effectively they leverage recommendation systems and are deeply embedded in the modern attention economy.
