Today, it is virtually impossible to log on to a social media platform and immediately see content that is clearly generated by artificial intelligence.
For me, it became an absolute hassle. When you log into Facebook, you’ll see a ton of ads for Meta’s free AI creation tools. When I go on Instagram, my elderly family member regularly fills my inbox with uninteresting AI video loops. But that glut of low-effort digital filler (commonly known as: “AI Slop””—This is a particularly big problem on TikTok.
Typically, TikTok’s highly tuned algorithms curate “For You” pages based on what users like, watch, and interact with. But an obvious problem arises in front TikTok also knows your preferences.
New accounts and children are being exposed to a ton of machine-generated junk, according to a new June 2026 research report from video editing platform Kapwing.
New users and children are the hardest hit with AI slop
Kapwing’s report includes some pretty shocking statistics that point out that TikTok’s AI slop issues are becoming increasingly apparent.
- Approximately 59% of the videos that appear on a new TikTok account’s “For You” page are classified as AI slops (which is likely three times more than the AI slops that new YouTube accounts serve).
- When it comes to kids, 57.4% of all TikTok videos for kids are also AI-driven.
- 97% of videos tagged with #cartoonkids fall into the AI slop category
- 74% of TikTok videos tagged with #healthtips are mostly AI-driven.
- 35% of educational TikToks related to science and education, 33.8% of the health category, and 33.5% of the history category are considered AI slop.
It’s worth noting that in 2025, TikTok introduced controls that give users the ability to reduce the amount of AI-generated content they see, and that the company has also invested in initiatives aimed at improving its users’ AI literacy.
Speaking of AI literacy, it’s worth keeping the following tips in mind when talking to kids about how to spot the pitfalls of TikTok and other social media AI.
- If you think it’s too weird to be real, pause before believing. AI-generated videos often succeed by offering shock value, such as celebrities doing something out of character or giving speeches never made by major historical figures. If your videos appear to be distributing fake news or show animals doing impossible things, you may be exposed to AI-generated content.
- Check to see if other legitimate sources are talking about the information provided to you. Before believing a video or its information to be true, check to see if it has been reported by a reliable news source. If serious allegations about this event only exist through viral videos, that’s a big warning sign that you’re being treated badly by AI.
- Look out for common signs of AI-generated content. Although AI video generators have improved significantly, the content they provide still has some common signs that reveal it. Those symptoms include fingers, hands, and teeth that appear in strange ways, backgrounds that change unexpectedly during movement, humans blinking in unnatural ways, unnatural voices that sound like robots, and objects that randomly appear/disappear.
- Follow creators who show you how to create content. It’s especially helpful to teach your kids to follow content creators who do a good job of explaining the details of AI content. Worth checking out for creators looking to dig deep into the topics of AI image/video creation, deepfakes, video editing, and fact-checking.
- Check the comments section: Just pause the video before checking the comments section and you’ll know if you’re watching something real or an obvious AI slop presentation.
conclusion
Kapwing’s report is alarming as it shows how advances in AI are overwhelming new accounts and children’s feeds. But with the right knowledge and good old common sense, it’s much easier for your kids to skip past AI-generated content as soon as they see it, and expose them to the kinds of videos that nourish their brains rather than pollute them.
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