Everyone loves to say the internet is drowning in AI-generated content. That the robots are writing all the posts. I used to nod along too. Then I read this sharp breakdown from an AI professional on LinkedIn, and it flipped my thinking completely.
Here’s the myth the author debunks: it’s not people using AI to create content. It’s people using AI to optimize for the algorithm. That’s a totally different game, and once you see it, you can’t unsee it.
The trend cycle nobody talks about
The creator lays out how every trend now burns through a predictable loop:
- Great content becomes a trend
- Early trend jackers show up
- More trend jackers pile in with AI
- The trend gets slopified
- The trend dies
Nothing new there, right? Trends have always risen and faded. But the expert’s key point is this: because of generative AI and automation, that cycle is getting shorter and shorter. What used to take months now collapses in weeks.
The mind behind this post noticed his own Instagram feed was wall-to-wall AI tutorials, almost all of them screaming “Comment for my free guide.” He clicked a few out of curiosity. The result? Even more comment bait flooded in. The algorithm used his curiosity against him.
How creators get played
This is the part that got me. The original poster argues that content creators are being used by AI before they even realize it. You chase the trend, you feed the machine, and the machine hands you more of the same to chase. It’s a treadmill dressed up as a strategy.
And here’s the twist that made me stop scrolling. The “AI” using creators isn’t some brilliant, all-knowing model. As this savvy professional puts it, it’s a decades-old recommendation algorithm. The same engagement engine that’s been around forever, just running faster now.
What to do instead
Rather than sprinting on the trend treadmill, the creator says to build on things that actually last:
- Your own consistent content pillars
- Real human connections
- Your brand identity
- Quality over quantity
His advice on numbers is refreshingly calm: track your analytics, but don’t get obsessed with them. Watch the signal, don’t worship it.
And to be clear, this isn’t an anti-AI rant. The author uses AI plenty and says so directly. The line that stuck with me:
Use AI. Do not let AI use you.
Why the human edge matters more now
Here’s the counterintuitive payoff. When everybody over-relies on AI to game the feed, being genuinely human becomes your biggest advantage. The more the timeline fills with manufactured slop, the more a real voice stands out.
The expert even raises a bigger worry: there’s a real chance the entire value of social media dissolves into that slop. His call to action is a collective one, asking creators to steer away from the death of the internet by simply staying human.
I think this reframe is worth sitting with. So much advice tells you to move faster and post more. This creator is quietly arguing the opposite: slow down, be consistent, be a person. That’s how you win a game everyone else is trying to automate.
The full post has a few more sharp observations on how these feeds trap you. Go check out the original LinkedIn post and give the author a follow.