Summary
Nate B. Jones interviews Chris Best, co-founder and CEO of Substack, about the growing problem of AI-generated slop — content mass-produced with no genuine human intent — and how platforms should respond. Best draws a distinction between AI as a creative tool used by someone who cares about the outcome versus AI deployed to produce thousands of posts for SEO with no human review. He cites data from Pangram, a leading AI-text detection company, showing that roughly 40% of long-form writing on LinkedIn is now fully AI-generated by their measures.
The conversation tackles a structural problem Best calls the broken proof-of-work signal: historically, a long piece of writing was itself evidence that someone invested real thought, because writing takes time. AI has severed that correlation entirely. The two discuss whether technology can restore the signal, and Best describes a hypothetical detection layer that goes beyond analyzing final text — instead looking for evidence of iterative human engagement throughout the drafting process. He notes that even highly AI-assisted work by a thoughtful writer can produce text that detectors flag, while low-effort slop can sometimes slip through.
Best also addresses how the slop dynamic is playing out inside organizations — Slack messages, internal docs, and code reviews increasingly carry what he calls an “AI smell” that signals no one has actually read what they wrote. Substack’s strategic response is to reinforce human voice and subscription-based credibility as the platform’s core differentiators, betting that readers will increasingly pay a premium to know a human being actually stands behind the content.
📺 Source: AI News & Strategy Daily | Nate B Jones · Published July 22, 2026
🏷️ Format: Interview
