"He argues that the algorithms have grown too sophisticated at sorting viewers into their own individual silos. If a viewer seeks out automotive content, they receive more automotive content. If they like health and beauty, their feed is largely restricted to health and beauty. The days of a single creator punching through to hundreds of millions of viewers are effectively over. Donaldson's rise required a specific historical moment, one where recommendation engines still permitted the emergence of mass figures. That window has closed."
"But a study last month from the video editing company Kapwing suggests the next phase may be considerably darker. Researchers examined 15,000 of YouTube's most popular channels and found that 278 of them consist entirely of what they term "AI slop", low-quality content churned out by artificial intelligence and designed to exploit recommendation systems. Put together, these channels have accumulated over 63 billion views and 221 million subscribers. Kapwing estimates they generate approximately $117 million in annual revenue."
Reed Duchscher spent six years building Jimmy Donaldson into MrBeast, the most-subscribed YouTuber with a $5 billion empire spanning chocolate bars, game shows and a Saudi-backed theme park. Algorithms have grown sophisticated at sorting viewers into individual silos, so users who seek automotive or beauty content receive mostly that content. The personalization of recommendation engines has effectively ended the era when a single creator could reach hundreds of millions of viewers. A Kapwing study of 15,000 top YouTube channels identified 278 channels made entirely of "AI slop," low-quality AI-generated content designed to exploit recommendations. Those channels together have over 63 billion views, 221 million subscribers and an estimated $117 million in annual revenue. A test account found 104 of the first 500 recommended videos were "AI slop," and another third qualified as " brain rot ", low-quality material engineered to monetise attention.
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