Mitch Joel's Blog: Six Pixels of Separation, page 5

When Dating Turns Into A Star Rating

Should we rate the people we date like we do with Uber drivers?

Because we are.
Like restaurants.
Like gadgets we buy on Amazon.
Like a video on YouTube.

We’ve taken the messiest, most irrational human act… attraction… and shoved it into the logic of a five-star scale with comments.

Tea, the women-only “dating safety” whisper network app, didn’t invent this… but it distilled it.
You could join a group chat… swap stories… post warnings.
Leave Yelp-style reviews of men you’d been on dates with.
A “green flag” for the good ones.
A “red flag” for the bad ones.

In a way, this makes perfect sense.

In a way, it feels like a real way to protect women.
Women helping women in an increasingly difficult, messy and sometimes dangerous dating landscape.
We say this is about safety… camaraderie… community… protecting each other.

But step back (even just a little) and it’s hard not to see something else.

It’s about whether we’re okay turning dating into a gig economy of reputations.
Where a name… a photo… a personal history… might be logged, shared and archived without consent.
Where what’s said might be fact… gossip… or pure opinion.
Where one person’s “cheap date” is another’s “knight in shining armour.”

Some have asked if the genders were reversed, would this app even be allowed in an app store?

We could discuss the gender issues in details, but that is not my area of expertise. 
My context is the technology and how it’s changing our behavior.
Once we normalize the idea that anyone can be rated and critiqued (even within a “private” group) those ratings stop feeling like information.
They start feeling like a record… a permanent file.
One that can be screenshot, shared, stripped of context… and that context could just be a feeling.

And when that file leaks (as Tea’s did) it’s not just the “reviewed” who get exposed.

It’s the “reviewers.”
Private conversations about divorces… fertility struggles… fears about safety… life anxieties you’d never post publicly… all suddenly dumped into the open.

The same vulnerability that was meant to protect becomes something that is weaponized.

It’s a tragic reminder that when we think we’re doing accountability.
Sometimes… we’re just doing surveillance.
And surveillance doesn’t care about gender (it cuts both ways).
Just like gossip.

To me, the bigger story isn’t men vs. women.

It’s what happens when platforms promise safety… but the system fails in ways that spill out beyond everyone’s control.
When a tool designed to help escapes its purpose and becomes leverage… or revenge.

The problem isn’t just Tea.

It’s how easily we slide from “protect each other” to “document each other.”
From “we need this” to “did you hear about so-and-so…”

We’ve turned whispers into receipts… and receipts into identity.

We live in a world thick with personal distrust (often for good reason).
A world where women are often treated horribly online (and offline).
A world where unverified information about anyone can go viral in minutes (and ruin lives and families in its wake).
A world where piling on has become sport (and shared beyond the initial platform).

And yet… after Tea’s public breach, almost a million new people signed up to take part.

The very tool meant to dodge danger wound up revealing private lives to the world… and that just encouraged more of that experience.

There’s got to be a better path forward.

This is what Elias Makos and I discussed on CJAD 800 AM.

Mitch Joel · When Dating Turns Into A Star Rating – The Elias Makos Show – CJAD 800

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

The AI Collaboration Illusion

We keep saying we’re “collaborating” with AI… “partnering” with it… letting it “co-create” with us.

I can’t tell if we’re doing something truly new with technology… or is this just a shinier term for (or new way to say) what we’ve always done with tools and technology.
We’ve been “partnered” with computers, cameras, spreadsheets, Photoshop, drum machines, samplers for decades, in the sense that we can’t/don’t do that kind of work without it.

They help us create.They automate parts of the process.They respond to queries.They create unique outputs.

But we never really used the word “partner” before.
We never say that “I partnered with my CRM to send out an email campaign.”

Why now?

Maybe it’s because AI “talks back”?
It feels like it’s giving us guidance.
It feels like it’s giving us more than a result.
Or is it because it’s producing something that looks more like an original idea than the sum of a calculation?

That changes how it feels… but is it really different than how we’ve worked with technology before?

I’ve been presenting the idea that we’ve moved away from The Attention Economy into The Intimacy Economy when I speak about these new tech shifts in my recent keynotes.
It’s this idea that AI “feels” like it’s speaking and creating uniquely for us (as an individual and with an unique result).
It even feigns intimacy in how it “types” out the response and uses the “…” to demonstrate how it’s “thinking.”

If we call AI a collaborator… our partner in a process, does that subtly change how we trust it? 

Or how much credit we give it?
Or is this just human nature (anthropomorphism)?
Or is it just another evolution…
Meaning does it matter if I write something or guide something to say it how I want it to be said (for more on this: Welcome To Vibe Content).

And if this is just semantics, why does the language matter so much… and why is it really irritating so many to say that this new tech is a collaborator?

I can’t put my finger on it yet… but I do think the words we use to frame this moment will shape how we build with AI, and how society responds to it.

This was debated and discussed over on LinkedIn and the perspectives were diverse.

To some AI is just a tool.
To some we should never pretend that AI works/outputs like a human (we partner/collaborate with humans only).
To some this is a new way to work and we are collaborating with it.
Tom Asaker framed it in a way that I am still chewing on: “Tools change the way you work. Partners change the way you think.”

Maybe the challenge is in how much one works with AI… and their level of sophistication in relation to the work?
My experience (based on Tom’s response) is that there have are multiple instances (multiple times a day), when I get outputs that both change the way I think and add clarity to the work I am doing.

What do you think? Is AI a partner… is it crazy to call it that… or just the next tool in the box?

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

The AI Collaboration Illusion

We keep saying we’re “collaborating” with AI… “partnering” with it… letting it “co-create” with us.

I can’t tell if we’re doing something truly new with technology… or is this just a shinier term for (or new way to say) what we’ve always done with tools and technology.
We’ve been “partnered” with computers, cameras, spreadsheets, Photoshop, drum machines, samplers for decades, in the sense that we can’t/don’t do that kind of work without it.

They help us create.They automate parts of the process.They respond to queries.They create unique outputs.

But we never really used the word “partner” before.
We never say that “I partnered with my CRM to send out an email campaign.”

Why now?

Maybe it’s because AI “talks back”?
It feels like it’s giving us guidance.
It feels like it’s giving us more than a result.
Or is it because it’s producing something that looks more like an original idea than the sum of a calculation?

That changes how it feels… but is it really different than how we’ve worked with technology before?

I’ve been presenting the idea that we’ve moved away from The Attention Economy into The Intimacy Economy when I speak about these new tech shifts in my recent keynotes.
It’s this idea that AI “feels” like it’s speaking and creating uniquely for us (as an individual and with an unique result).
It even feigns intimacy in how it “types” out the response and uses the “…” to demonstrate how it’s “thinking.”

If we call AI a collaborator… our partner in a process, does that subtly change how we trust it? 

Or how much credit we give it?
Or is this just human nature (anthropomorphism)?
Or is it just another evolution…
Meaning does it matter if I write something or guide something to say it how I want it to be said (for more on this: Welcome To Vibe Content).

And if this is just semantics, why does the language matter so much… and why is it really irritating so many to say that this new tech is a collaborator?

I can’t put my finger on it yet… but I do think the words we use to frame this moment will shape how we build with AI, and how society responds to it.

This was debated and discussed over on LinkedIn and the perspectives were diverse.

To some AI is just a tool.
To some we should never pretend that AI works/outputs like a human (we partner/collaborate with humans only).
To some this is a new way to work and we are collaborating with it.
Tom Asaker framed it in a way that I am still chewing on: “Tools change the way you work. Partners change the way you think.”

Maybe the challenge is in how much one works with AI… and their level of sophistication in relation to the work?
My experience (based on Tom’s response) is that there have are multiple instances (multiple times a day), when I get outputs that both change the way I think and add clarity to the work I am doing.

What do you think? Is AI a partner… is it crazy to call it that… or just the next tool in the box?

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Christie Smith On Distributed Teams, Generative AI And Global Shifts – This Week’s Six Pixels of Separation Podcast

Episode #996 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to:

Christie Smith is a former senior executive at Apple, Deloitte and Accenture with over three decades of leadership experience across industries including life sciences, consumer goods and finance. She holds a doctorate in Social Work and Organizational Psychology and now leads The Humanity Studio, a leadership advisory firm focused on redefining the future of work. In her new book, Essential – How Distributed Teams, Generative AI, and Global Shifts Are Creating a New Human-Powered Leadership (along with her co-author Kelly Monahan), Christie outlines a bold new framework for leaders navigating a post-pandemic, AI-driven, decentralized world. This episode explores the urgent need for management transformation – from command-and-control to people-centered leadership – and how today’s leaders must adapt to rising expectations around purpose, trust and equity. Topics include the power shift from corporations to individuals, the cultural cost of distributed work, and why organizations must stop measuring productivity and start cultivating human energy. The discussion also unpacks the psychological strain of “always-on” work cultures, the promise and peril of generative AI, and how leaders can build communities, not just companies. At its core, this conversation is about what comes after burnout… what it means to lead with humanity, design systems that elevate people, and use power responsibly in a time of profound disruption. For anyone rethinking what it means to lead, build and belong in the modern workplace, this episode offers a timely and hopeful reframing of what’s possible. Enjoy the conversation…

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via Apple Podcast or whatever platform you may choose):  #996 – Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast .

Before you go… ThinkersOne  is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

SPOS #996 – Christie Smith On Distributed Teams, Generative AI And Global Shifts

Welcome to episode #996 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

Christie Smith is a former senior executive at Apple, Deloitte and Accenture with over three decades of leadership experience across industries including life sciences, consumer goods and finance. She holds a doctorate in Social Work and Organizational Psychology and now leads The Humanity Studio, a leadership advisory firm focused on redefining the future of work. In her new book, Essential – How Distributed Teams, Generative AI, and Global Shifts Are Creating a New Human-Powered Leadership (along with her co-author Kelly Monahan), Christie outlines a bold new framework for leaders navigating a post-pandemic, AI-driven, decentralized world. This episode explores the urgent need for management transformation – from command-and-control to people-centered leadership – and how today’s leaders must adapt to rising expectations around purpose, trust and equity. Topics include the power shift from corporations to individuals, the cultural cost of distributed work, and why organizations must stop measuring productivity and start cultivating human energy. The discussion also unpacks the psychological strain of “always-on” work cultures, the promise and peril of generative AI, and how leaders can build communities, not just companies. At its core, this conversation is about what comes after burnout… what it means to lead with humanity, design systems that elevate people, and use power responsibly in a time of profound disruption. For anyone rethinking what it means to lead, build and belong in the modern workplace, this episode offers a timely and hopeful reframing of what’s possible. Enjoy the conversation…

Running time: 56:23.Hello from beautiful Montreal.Listen and subscribe over at Apple Podcasts.Listen and subscribe over at Spotify.Please visit and leave comments on the blog – Six Pixels of Separation.Feel free to connect to me directly on Facebook here: Mitch Joel on Facebook.Check out ThinkersOne.or you can connect on LinkedIn.…or on X.Here is my conversation with Christie Smith.Essential – How Distributed Teams, Generative AI, and Global Shifts Are Creating a New Human-Powered Leadership.The Humanity Studio.Follow Christie on Instagram.Follow Christie on LinkedIn.

Chapters:

(00:00) – The Evolving Role of Leadership.
(03:06) – Emotional Maturity in Leadership.
(05:51) – The Impact of the Pandemic on Leadership.
(08:55) – Employee Expectations and Organizational Change.
(11:54) – The Shift Towards Purpose-Driven Leadership.
(15:05) – Navigating Challenges in Large Organizations.
(18:11) – The Rise of Entrepreneurship and New Work Models.
(21:03) – Community and Connection in the Digital Age.
(33:24) – The Human Element in AI and Workplaces.
(39:10) – Agency and Connection in Leadership.
(45:51) – Legacy and Leadership in a Changing World.
(52:10) – Building a New Organization: Culture and Purpose.
(58:28) – Curiosity and Hope in the Face of Challenges.

Download the Podcast here: Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast – Episode #996.

Before you go… ThinkersOne  is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Six Links That Make You Think #789

Is there one link, story, picture or thought that you saw online this week that you think somebody you know must see?

My friends: Alistair Croll (Just Evil Enough, Solve for Interesting, Tilt the Windmill, Interesting Bits, HBS, chair of Strata, Startupfest, FWD50, and Scaletechconf; author of Lean Analytics and some other books), Hugh McGuire (Rebus Foundation, PressBooks, LibriVox) and I decided that every week the three of us are going to share one link for one another (for a total of six links) that each individual feels the other person “must see.”

Check out these six links that we’re recommending to one another:

Outcomes & Systems: From Predicted Goods to Emergent Cohesion – Indy Johar – Substack. “A mouthful. But it’s an argument I agree with: In complex systems, any ‘outcome’ you set is a thing the system will immediately game for. Known as Goodhart’s law, it’s the reason doctors who are paid by patient survival suddenly operate on only the fittest patients. Once any measurement becomes a target, it stops being a good metric. Instead, argues Indy Johar, we should strive for systems that create the conditions for desirable futures. Long, chewy read – but also very important for fixing the modern world.” (Alistair for Hugh). Reading Abundance From China – Afra – Con-Current – Substack . “A book club gets together to discuss Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson‘s book Abundance. The twist? They were born and raised China, but now live in the West, and as a result, have a very different baseline from North Americans. Lots to internalize in this article, but the part that stuck with me was about how the Hollywood ideal of the ‘good life’ influences politics. For example: ‘I think there’s this incredibly limited imagination about what the good life looks like in American culture – both among ordinary people and political elites.'” (Alistair for Mitch). The Work Of Plagiarism And The Work Of Selling Out – Oliver Bateman Does The Work . “More thoughts on how various ethical/moral particularities are likely to go the way of the dodo with AI. ‘Every AI paragraph generated… can be fairly… described as plagiarism in aggregate.’ AI is a big wash/dry cycle of everything humans have written (including Wikipedia, code, textbooks and your blog posts from 2005) that the big AI companies could stuff into their data centres, with copyright laws discarded as forgiveness not permission bumps. And, as with anything useful enough (with enough capital behind it), some may care now; soon no one will. Is it going to matter? Depends what your definition of ‘is’ is.” (Hugh for Alistair). Humanlike? – Mike Dacey – Aeon . “Funny animal videos, and our insistence on interpreting animal emotions incorrectly. The first video linked in this article is the cutest thing, a polar bear patting the head of a dog. Interspecies love? Or prepping for a meal? A different bear ate one of the dogs from that same pack of dogs around the same time this video was taken. Was that dog happy or in abject terror? It’s not that animals don’t feel emotions; just that we’re not so good at interpreting them.” (Hugh for Mitch) .    Thinking Is Becoming A Luxury Good – Mary Harrington – The New York Times . “This op-ed piece is making a different kind of ‘digital divide’ argument. Yes, it’s still in relation to those with wealth and access versus those who don’t, but it’s about smartphones. First, you need to believe that smartphones have changed how people read and think (I’m not 100% percent convinced that this is true – especially when you look at the stats on ebooks and where that market is driivng… teens, BookTok, etc…). But let’s put that aside and agree that it’s making deep focus and long reading harder to develop. The claim is that this shift is creating inequity because wealthier families can limit screen time and support strong literacy while poorer children face more distractions. If this keeps going, society may become more divided, less thoughtful (is that even possible?) and easier to manipulate. Do you buy this argument?” (Mitch for Alistair). The Changing World Order: How Countries Go Broke – Ray Dalio – Modern Wisdom – YouTube . “I get worried every time I recommend a link to anything that anyone might find a hint political. It’s that contentious out there. With that, I could not resist, because I know how much Hugh loves the writing/thinking of Ray Dalio. To me this is not about politics but economics (still, I know how people are thinking these days). This conversation is based on Ray’s new book, How Countries Go Broke and (no surprise) it’s through cycles of debt and spending. Ray explains the connection between economics, politics and power in this conversation and they go very deep for almost an hour and a half. Ray’s hopeful that by understanding these patterns, we can all accept the extreme economic challenges like employment and government debt that we’re facing, as AI take hold. These are difficult and bumpy conversations and very worthy of everyone’s attention…” (Mitch for Hugh).

Feel free to share these links and add your picks on X, Facebook, in the comments below or wherever you play.

Before you go… ThinkersOne  is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Eric Bass From Shinedown On This Month’s Groove – The No Treble Podcast

“Wait… did I miss something? Why is there an article about a bass podcast on Six Pixels of Separation?”

Here’s why:

In the late nineties my first job was as a music journalist (actually, my first interview was with Tommy Lee from Motley Crue right before the band released Dr. Feelgood).
I spent many years interviewing musicians and artists for local weekly alternative newspapers, national and international magazines (and even published three music magazines – before we had the Internet).
I also studied and played the electric bass (in high school and post-secondary) and always felt like bass players never really had a chance to tell their stories.
So, about ten years ago, Seth Godin introduced me to Corey Brown (founder of No Treble – one of the world’s biggest bass platforms – and he also worked on Squidoo with Seth).
From there, Corey and I decided to try this monthly podcast where I would interview bass players and talk about their music, art, creativity and more.
I’m hopeful that these conversations will inspire your work, creativity and innovation as much as they do for me…

Eric Bass from Shinedown is this month’s conversation on Groove – The No Treble Podcast.

You can listen the new episode right here: Groove – The No Treble Podcast – Episode #128 – Eric Bass.

Eric Bass might be best known as the powerhouse bassist and producer behind Shinedown, one of the most successful rock bands of the past two decades, but in this deeply personal and revealing conversation, we get a glimpse of the multidimensional artist (and human) beneath the stage lights. From his earliest days as a child violinist to picking up the bass in high school and eventually evolving into a sought-after producer and multi-instrumentalist, Eric reflects on the emotional highs and crushing lows of a career spent making music at the highest level. The episode goes far beyond tour stories or studio tales. It’s an honest excavation of purpose, burnout, depression and the redemptive role of creativity. Eric opens up about the intense pressure of producing Shinedown’s recent albums, including Planet Zero. We also explore the physicality and philosophy of the bass… how he approaches tone, restraint and storytelling within a song, and why he believes simplicity often carries the most weight. Throughout the conversation, Eric is disarmingly candid about the cost of constant output, what it takes to truly protect your creative well, and how he’s learned to define success on his own terms. Whether you’re a musician, a producer or simply someone who’s ever felt burned out from chasing perfection, there’s something powerful in Eric’s journey. His ability to pause, reassess and begin again without shame. Listeners will walk away not just with a deeper appreciation for Shinedown’s music, but with a more intimate understanding of what it takes to keep showing up when the spotlight fades and the only voice left is your own. If you’ve ever wrestled with ambition, identity or the struggle to stay present in a world that demands output over introspection, this episode is for you. Enjoy the conversation…

What is Groove – The No Treble Podcast?

This is an ambitious effort. This will be a fascinating conversation. Our goal at Groove is to build the largest oral history of bass players. Why Groove? Most of the content about the bass revolves around gear, playing techniques, and more technical chatter. For us, bassists are creative artists with stories to tell. They are a force to be reckon with. These are the stories and conversation that we will capture. To create this oral history of why these artists chose the bass, what their creative lives are like, and where inspiration can be found.

Listen in:  Groove – The No Treble Podcast – Episode #128 – Eric Bass

Groove – Episode #128: Eric Bass – Shinedown by No Treble

Are you interested in what’s next? How to decode the future? I publish between 2-3 times per week and then the Six Pixels of Separation Podcast comes out every Sunday. Feel free to subscribe (and tell your friends). 

Are Your KPIs Gaslighting You?

We don’t talk enough about how much dysfunction in the system can get rewarded in business.
… Or the person who uncovers, updates the system and everyone is better for it.

Both of those statements can be true at the same time (which is weird).

We design systems to measure performance…
To drive outcomes… to create accountability.
And for a while, they seem to work.
The problem has a fix.
The numbers go up.
The charts are green.
The dashboards hum.
The analytics paints a picture. 

But then the weird stuff starts to happen.

Workarounds.
Shadow processes.
Invisible friction that no one wants to talk about, because they assume it’s a feature and not a bug. 
And yet… the metrics still look great (on a certain level).
Because we train everyone else on this process. 
Because we’ve built systems that reward optics over insight.
Because the phrase “that’s how it’s always been done” gets tossed around.

This was the thread that pulled me in during this week’s conversation with Nelson Repenning on Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast.

We dug into how easy it is for businesses to end up performing success while burying the very problems those systems were meant to solve.
Think about how many times you’ve seen a company hit a milestone… while its teams were drowning in chaos and process.
How often have we praised the outcome… while ignoring the burnout, the workarounds, the emotional cost of holding it all together behind the scenes?
We live in a culture obsessed with inputs and outputs… with speed and scale… with “hitting the numbers”… with KPIs and OKRs. 

But what is the real cost… the real truth?

It’s all the unspoken stuff happening in between.
The firefighting that gets normalized.
The meetings that serve as proxies for progress.
The good people who quietly leave because no one was willing to name the system failures out loud (let alone have the time to fix it).

This is not about incompetence.

It’s about the limits of surface-level problem-solving.
It’s about what happens when we reward performing stability instead of building systems that can generate learning.
I’ve been thinking about how many teams never get the time or trust to fix the thing beneath the thing.
That feeling of knowing how to create better outcomes because you’re in the business… not just working on it.

If you’ve ever worked inside a system that looked good on paper… but felt broken in places in practice… this one’s for you.

(Nelson is a professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and we talked about his new book – which will be out at the end of August – There’s Got to Be a Better Way – How To Deliver Results And Get Rid Of The Stuff That Gets In The Way Of Real Work on this week’s episode).

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

AI Slop Is Eating The Internet (And You’re Eating It Too)

There was a time when “content” felt like a generous word.

A beautiful essay shared to the world… a well-edited short film on YouTube… a great tweet when we had Twitter… A smart whitepaper with unique research behind it.
Even a meme that hit your brain in the right way… and you shared it generously… and your connections thanked you for it.

Now?

It’s AI-generated trampoline rabbits on CCTV.
It’s AI-generated listicles that feel vaguely familiar (and smeared with questionable ads).
It’s AI-generated reviews for products that don’t exist… written by people who were never born.
It’s AI-generated comments on LinkedIn…. written by someone’s “AI marketing automation software” as a way to boost their own metrics.

This is the era of AI slop… and we’re marinating in it.

What is AI slop?
It’s not just bad content (we had that long before anyone was using ChatGPT).
It’s content made for machines… not humans.
It exists to catch an algorithm’s eye… not yours (and yet it does).
It’s the auto-written YouTube description.
It’s the podcast transcript spun into 10 SEO-chocked blog posts.

It’s an ocean of sludge where the goal isn’t creativity or communication… it’s volume to please the algorithm.

As Axios put it: “The weirder it is, the more time we spend looking at it, signaling the algorithm that we want to see more like it.”
And that’s the trick.
The trampoline rabbit goes viral because it’s uncanny.
We can’t look away… we click… digital rubber-necking.

The platforms are not only built for it, but have been building themselves up to be primed for this moment.

TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn… these are no longer places to follow your network.
They’ve become digital slot machines.
And every pull loads in AI slop from accounts you’ve never followed, optimized for a momentary pause and an accidental scroll… or click.
Two thirds of your Instagram feed is now from strangers… and that’s by design.
As John Oliver recently said in his takedown of AI slop:
“It’s pretty… galling for the same people who spent the past decade screaming ‘fake news’ at any headline they didn’t like to be confronted with actual fake news and suddenly be extremely open to it.”

The issue isn’t just quality.. it’s credibility… and what it’s doing to our own reality.

When the slop floods your feed, even real content starts to feel fake.
A real video with real consequences?
Just another rabbit on a trampoline.
And this isn’t a glitch… it’s the business model.
In countries like Indonesia, Pakistan and India, slop farms are churning out AI content by the gigabyte… because even if each post earns pennies, at scale, the numbers add up.
And if you can get some of those people to follow the content… you can show them other kinds of content (of the politically-swaying kind).

The content doesn’t need to be smart.

It just needs to look like content.
Here’s what that means for us:
We used to ask, “Is this true?”
Now we ask, “Was this made by a human?”
That’s not a shift in skepticism… that’s a collapse in trust.

Worse: it’s rewiring us.

We’re becoming fluent in slop.
We skim faster…
We feel less….
We dismiss more…

We mistake frequency for importance… weirdness for wit.

And the real stuff?
It’s harder to find.
Harder to feel.
Harder to trust.

But here’s the contrarian take I’m holding on to:

Slop might be the best argument we’ve had in years for human content.
For real voices… for real quirks…
Now, all we need is for the platforms to agree.
For the platforms to recognize and prioritize curation over convenience.

But it’s also on us because AI slop isn’t just clutter… it’s creeping chaos. 

The question isn’t just “How do we get better at spotting slop?”
It’s “How do we keep ourselves from becoming it?”
How do we stop ourselves from engaging with it… helping it get more attention?
It not only cheapens content… but it will confuse the truth.
The antidote isn’t turning off your device or leaving the platform… it’s demanding platforms stop rewarding volume over value.
Because the real danger of AI slop isn’t just what it does to the feed…

It’s what it does to us.

This is what Elias Makos and I discussed on CJAD 800 AM.

Mitch Joel · AI Slop Is Eating The Internet (And You’re Eating It Too) – The Elias Makos Show – CJAD 800

Before you go… ThinkersOne is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.

Nelson Repenning On Delivering Real Results At Work – This Week’s Six Pixels of Separation Podcast

Episode #995 of Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast is now live and ready for you to listen to:

Nelson Repenning has built his career at MIT Sloan and Shift Gear by asking a simple but haunting question: why do so many smart, capable organizations fail to get the right work done? In his new book, There’s Got to Be a Better Way, Nelson (along with his co-author, Don Kieffer) introduces dynamic work design: a practical framework that helps leaders move beyond broken systems and toward better execution. In this conversation, we explore the five principles behind this approach: solving the right problem, structuring for discovery, connecting the human chain, regulating for flow and visualizing the work. We talk about how businesses become addicted to heroics and strategic ambiguity, and how this culture often traps people in cycles of fire-fighting and busywork that look productive but deliver little. Nelson shares stories from his experience applying these principles in casinos, hospitals, biotech labs, and even homeless shelters (environments where urgency is real, resources are stretched and clarity can make or break outcomes). We also discuss how leadership often overcomplicates productivity with reorgs and top-down mandates, instead of fixing the structural design flaws that block meaningful progress. Nelson is quick to point out that the work isn’t just about doing more: it’s about doing it better… and that better means aligning actual workflow with the outcomes organizations care about. He reflects on his early days as a student at MIT and why dynamic work design is less a management fad and more a necessary shift in how modern teams operate. If you’re tired of watching your best people get burned out chasing KPIs while nothing fundamental improves, this episode offers a clearer path. We also get into the tension between change management and change design, and why the latter matters more in a world flooded with noise, complexity and well-intentioned but ineffective solutions. This is a sharp and focused take on work culture from someone who’s spent a lifetime challenging the systems beneath it. Enjoy the conversation…

You can grab the latest episode of Six Pixels of Separation here (or feel free to subscribe via Apple Podcast or whatever platform you may choose):  #995 – Six Pixels of Separation – The ThinkersOne Podcast .

Before you go… ThinkersOne  is a new way for organizations to buy bite-sized and personalized thought leadership video content (live and recorded) from the best Thinkers in the world. If you’re looking to add excitement and big smarts to your meetings, corporate events, company off-sites, “lunch & learns” and beyond, check it out.