Thought Leadership
LinkedIn is cracking down on soulless AI posts: The algorithm penalizes generic texts. Views of AI spam dropped by 40 percent.
The professional networking platform LinkedIn is drawing consequences from the flood of interchangeable, AI-generated texts. To protect the platform from soulless “AI slop,” the Microsoft subsidiary is penalizing uninspired posts and throttling their visibility in the feed.
After users spent months mocking interchangeable bullet-pointed lists accented by standard emojis, B2B platitudes, and artificially inflated advice, the network is now actively pushing back. A report published in July by research firm Pangram revealed that more than 40 percent of long-form posts on the platform were purely AI-generated—a record figure compared to platforms like X (around 30 percent) or Reddit. For LinkedIn, this represents a business risk, as monotonous texts reduce dwell time and drive users away.
“I know you think you’re doing the right thing with your perfectly bulleted list and your hook at the top. But what works is being human.”
Dan Roth, Editor-in-Chief of LinkedIn
Reports and In-House Detection AI
In August, LinkedIn initially rolled out a report button allowing users to flag posts as low-quality AI content (“AI slop”); the button was clicked more than one million times within its first two weeks.
At the same time, the network relies on its own detection algorithms: An internal team of journalists and social media experts trains models to distinguish vapid AI texts from authentic posts. If the system flags a post as low-quality AI content, its organic distribution is drastically curtailed—the post then remains largely restricted to the author’s direct connections.
Reach for AI Slop Drops by 40 Percent
Additionally, an internal advisory team supports executives and subject matter experts in communicating more humanly again. Users are encouraged to embrace imperfection—such as sharing spontaneous video messages rather than glossy studio productions—instead of running standard prompts through chatbots like ChatGPT or Claude.
According to the company, these counter-measures are already showing measurable success: Views of posts classified as AI slop declined by 40 percent last month. While LinkedIn does not intend to ban AI assistance outright, those who adopt texts without review and personal touch must reckon with massive drops in reach.
(Editorial Team)
