Lately I’ve been playing on X and other places online and noticed a lot of bots and AI generated content. And It seems to be getting worse all the time. It makes me wonder if the Dead Internet Theory is true. The idea that much of the internet is now dominated by bots, automated accounts, and AI-generated content.
What is Dead Internet Theory?
Dead Internet Theory is the idea that much of the internet is now dominated by bots, automated accounts, and AI-generated content. That the vast majority of what we see online isn’t created by real people anymore. Bots or algorithms pretending to be humans posting fake comments, automating accounts, or AI-generated writings and images.
Some might have innocent goals like a search engine indexer scanning a site. Some are lazy like AI managing a social media account. Others are malicious like bullying, hacking, and trying to sway public opinion with the illusion of numbers.
The Rise of Bots and AI on the Internet
Bots have been part of the internet for a long time. I used to run a internet forum back around 2005 and this was a problem even then.Spam bots would sign up for accounts and post stuff. I also wrote about how the internet is full of bots back in 2018. But now with AI its become a lot more sophisticated and bots are easier to use so there are more of them. I have heard from post like this one that over half of all internet traffic is now bots.
Bots now days do more than just post spam. They can write blog posts, mimic human conversation, and even create realistic videos and images. Its getting harder to detect too as AI gets more powerful. I’ve even heard of entire online discussions happening where every participant turned out to be a bot.
Social Proof
Social media seems to be at the center of dead internet theory. I think at this point most platforms are full of bot accounts powered by AI with minimum human involvement to run them. One person can seem like 1000 people making it seem like their product, opinion, or agenda is the popular one. There are even view bots for streamers to make their content look more popular. The reason for this is called “Social Proof” and bot armies are very good at doing this to manipulate people.
Do people care?
The sad thing is I’m not sure if most people even care. Its hard for me to put into words but I think human made content is more interesting. I kind of think about it like an art. When you read or look at something someone made your looking at a part of them. On some level you are connecting to them. Its genuine and not emotionally flat. I rather read a 2 page story wrote with passion from a human then a 200 page story from an AI. But I’m starting to wonder if i’m in the minority because I haven’t ran into many who share my opinion. But I don’t want to live in a world were I don’t know if I’m interacting with an AI or a human.
What can we do about Dead Internet Theory
This is a hard question. I think the first thing to do is to be skeptical about anything new you see. Then try to take a more critical look at what your reading or seeing.
For example is the social media account new? Does it look like a real account with a range of post and emotions or is it suspiciously single minded. What about the timing of the interactions and the writing style. AI seems to have a way of writing that is not always matched by a casual post online.
Other then that I would say try to support people who are genuine. If you see a real person doing real things then encourage them. The internet will be better off for it in the long run.
Do you have any ideas? Leave a comment below to let everyone know. But if your a bot please don’t haha.
