Image credits: Yiying Li
Macquarie just crowned “AI slop” the word of the year for 2025. A fitting description of what happens when teams let generative AI run on autopilot.
Identical ideas. Identical visuals. Identical products. With this happening, the risk is not that AI replaces work. It is that AI replaces thinking.
AI made us faster. That part is undeniable. The real question is how far we let that speed go before everything blends into one grey, average, forgettable blur.
Here is the uncomfortable truth. Speed is not an advantage when everyone has it. Creativity is.
Bill Bernbach said it decades ago. “Creativity is the last unfair advantage we are legally allowed to take over our competitors.” Right now, that still rings true.
As the cost of execution falls toward zero, the cost of original thought rises. And with it comes the fatigue of sorting through things that do not feel genuine.
Cybernetics shows how overreliance on AI turns output into overload
Image credits to David Caudill
Cybernetics studies how systems stay stable when complexity increases. Two concepts explain our current reality: variety and entropy.
| Concept | Meaning | What AI Does | Why It Overwhelms Us |
|---|---|---|---|
| Variety | Number of possible outputs or states | Generates endless versions of text, code, images, reviews, resumes | Our brains cannot process or filter this many possibilities |
| Entropy | Unpredictability inside those outputs | Produces content that looks correct but is subtly wrong | Errors appear real, so quality becomes harder to judge |
This is why everything feels like slop. Not because the output is useless. But because its variety exceeds our cognitive limits and its entropy breaks our ability to make quick decisions.
AI generates code that looks clean but behaves unpredictably. It writes features faster than teams can review. On the surface everything looks polished, but underneath the system becomes harder to maintain, harder to reason about, and harder to trust. As a result, the long term cost is much higher
So if low quality AI output increases noise, what increases signal? Creativity.
What Creative Leaders Actually Do
If you want to stay competent in an AI-saturated world, creative leadership matters more than ever.
1. Problem: AI makes it too easy to publish noise.
Solution: They refuse to ship AI slop. The filter is straightforward: Does this feel distinct enough to matter? If not, it stays in draft.
2. Problem: AI reinforces existing habits instead of challenging them.
Solution: They use AI to provoke, not replace. Creative leaders push the model for contrast and edge. They use it to break patterns, not repeat them.
3. Problem: AI encourages volume thinking.
Solution: They prioritise clarity over volume. They choose the sharpest idea, not the tallest stack.
4. Problem: AI makes everything look derivative.
Solution: They maintain a high bar for taste. Taste becomes the filter that separates signal from trend. Stick to building something that lasts. It prevents teams from building Fast Fashion SaaS and calling it innovation.
Fast is the baseline now. There is no advantage in solely matching speed.
Everyone has tools to be fast and generate more output. The advantage belongs to the teams that stay intentional while everyone else copies.
If you want to build software that lasts, let’s have a conversation.
FAQ
Why talk about “AI slop” now?
Because speed is no longer scarce. When AI makes it effortless to produce content, code and design, the bottleneck shifts from execution to discernment. Teams drown not because output is low, but because it is undifferentiated.
Is AI the problem?
No. AI is neutral. The issue is using it without intent. When teams let models take over thinking rather than extend it, the result is volume without value.
What does creativity have to do with software?
Everything. Creative reasoning is what sets direction. Without it, teams build features that look polished but do not solve real problems. Creativity is not art. It is the ability to choose what matters and discard what doesn’t.
Why does AI increase cognitive overload?
Because it expands variety and entropy at the same time: endless options plus subtle inaccuracies. Humans cannot efficiently filter both. It feels like everything is “almost right” but never trustworthy enough.
If AI makes things faster, why is speed no longer an advantage?
Speed was an advantage when only a few could move fast. Now it is the default. Once everyone reaches the same baseline, advantage comes from depth, clarity and originality.
How do creative leaders stay ahead?
By using AI deliberately. They use it to probe directions, generate contrast, challenge habits and refine thought. They set a high taste threshold and move slowly where it matters.
Isn’t more output always better?
No. More output creates more noise. Most teams do not have a volume problem. They have a filter problem. Clarity wins over quantity.
What does this mean for product teams?
You cannot rely on AI to think for you. Strategy, taste, discernment and judgment become the actual leverage points. Execution is cheap. Direction is not.
How do I apply this in my company?
Enforce a bar: nothing ships unless it is distinct, defensible and intentional. Use AI to explore, but let humans curate. Build systems that amplify original thinking instead of replacing it.