Merriam-Webster has selected 'slop' as its 2025 Word of the Year, reflecting widespread concern over the proliferation of low-quality artificial intelligence-generated content across digital platforms. The term underscores growing scrutiny of AI outputs in media, advertising, and social networks.
- Merriam-Webster’s 2025 Word of the Year is 'slop,' defined as low-quality AI-generated content.
- Search volume for 'slop' increased 330% on Merriam-Webster’s site from June to December 2025.
- AI-generated content volume across major platforms rose 65% year-over-year.
- Meta reported a 12% decline in user engagement with AI-curated content in Q3 2025.
- Nvidia’s stock fell 4.2% in November amid concerns over AI output quality.
- 41% of AI video content tested in late 2025 failed basic coherence and factual accuracy checks.
Merriam-Webster has declared 'slop' its 2025 Word of the Year, citing a sharp increase in public and professional discourse around the term’s use to describe low-quality, generic, or poorly constructed content produced by artificial intelligence. The selection comes amid a marked escalation in AI-generated posts on platforms like Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, Google’s YouTube, and X (formerly Twitter), where content volume has grown by over 65% in the past 12 months, according to internal metrics from several digital ad agencies. The term 'slop' now ranks among the top 10 most-searched words on Merriam-Webster’s site this year, with searches rising 330% since June 2025. This surge coincides with rising investor concerns over the long-term viability of AI-driven content strategies, especially as digital advertising revenues—projected to reach $712 billion globally in 2025—face potential erosion from diminished user engagement due to content fatigue. Companies like Meta, Google (GOOGL), Tesla (TSLA), and Nvidia (NVDA) have seen heightened market attention on AI ethics and output quality. Nvidia’s stock, for instance, dipped 4.2% in late November after an industry report noted that 41% of AI-generated video content on major platforms failed basic coherence and fact-checking tests. Similarly, Meta reported a 12% drop in average user time spent on AI-curated feeds during Q3, attributing the decline to 'content fatigue.' The word’s adoption signals a turning point in how stakeholders evaluate AI's role in content creation. Regulators and platforms are now under greater pressure to implement quality filters, with several major tech firms announcing new AI content verification systems in December. The trend may force a recalibration of AI investment strategies, particularly in sectors reliant on user-generated or AI-amplified content.