The debate surrounding AI has grown very fervent in recent years. AI technology is advancing at a rapid pace. It seems every few months we see the parameters of what is possible with AI widen massively. And there are solid arguments on both sides of the aisle. Many people worry about AI automating too many jobs, which will lead to a sharp increase in unemployment. Many in the creative sectors are worried about AI art generators stealing their content or replacing them entirely.
While on the other side of the argument many people point to the numerous benefits AI has already brought to the world. In the medical world we are seeing AI being used to help diagnose life threatening conditions far earlier than ever before. Numerous industries are now able to fully automate their administration systems with vastly reduced margins of error.
Whatever your view on AI, there is no denying that there are positives and negatives to the technology. But one area that is being seriously damaged by AI is social media. One of the most prominent and domineering industries on the planet.
AI Accounts
One of the main issues plaguing social media these days is the huge number of AI accounts now populating most of the major platforms. These accounts, while set up by real people, are designed to function autonomously. With pictures, captions, and videos being automatically generated and posted.
The primary goal of these accounts is to build up passive income for the people behind the accounts. More often than not the accounts are designed to look like they are an attractive female. With intentions of getting followers through thirst traps and suggestively sexual content. Another use of AI accounts is to help boost people’s profiles. These accounts are designs to look as real as possible so that the likes and comments they leave go undetected.
Many social media platforms are actively working to quell the large number of AI accounts. Using a mix of bans and shadowbans. But this has led to an entirely new issue occurring. Normal accounts are being shadowbanned as they are being mistaken for AI accounts. This is a twofold issue stemming from how good LLMs have become at imitating people, and also the issues surrounding neurotypical communication habits.
There are numerous posts online by neurotypical people claiming that people are assuming they are using AI when they aren’t. It is common for neurotypical people to be a bit more blunt in their communication. Particularly through digital means. This has led to a large number of genuine accounts getting shadowbanned. We used this checker tool for shadowbans from GetUpvotes to check the metrics and we have noticed a dramatic increase in shadowbans for accounts with no noticeable infractions.
The Dead Internet Theory
The dead internet theory is a stipulation that, since 2016, the internet has primarily been made up of bot activity. Forums, social media, digital selling platforms. It was theorized that roughly 60-70% of all accounts on the internet are actually bots.
Naturally there wasn’t much evidence to fully support this. It is impossible to deny that bot activity has been increasing steadily year to year. Especially on social media platforms. But with the rise of AI accounts the dead internet theory is making a resurgence online. And this time there is a lot more evidence to support it.
Wherever you look you will see thousands of people talking about how they are leaving social media due to the increase in AI accounts. And this is extremely detrimental to the health of social media. There are many people who would happily see social media vanish from our world. And we can’t deny that it can be unhealthy and far too addictive.
But social media also plays a pivotal role in our digital society. It was, for a brief time, a source of news that was free from the bias associated with TV news channels. It was a platform for oppressed voices to speak their message. But even this functionality is being drowned out by the increase of AI accounts and fake news.
We would argue that this is the most harmful impact AI has had. It has further ruined the validity of social media as a credible source of news and information. While platforms like Instagram and Facebook have long been unreliable due to their corporate ties. Platforms like Reddit were still bastions of reliable news. And unless we see dramatic AI legislation instituted, these issues will likely worsen in the years to come.