Welcome to YouTube in the era of AI-generated videos: featuring a baby stranded in space, a zombie football star, and a cat drama set among the stars.

Currently, one in ten of the fastest-growing YouTube channels globally is dedicated entirely to AI-generated content, highlighting advances in technology that have led to an influx of artificial media.

According to an analysis by the Guardian, which utilized data from analytics firms like Playboard, nine of the top 100 fastest-growing channels this July featured solely AI-generated content.

These channels offer bizarre narratives, such as babies aboard pre-launch rockets, an undead Cristiano Ronaldo, and melodramas starring anthropomorphized cats. The surge in AI video creation is propelled by powerful new tools like Google’s VEO 3 and Elon Musk’s Grok Imagine.

One channel has garnered 1.6 million views and 3.9 million subscribers, called Space Chain, while the Super Cat League features a human-like cat in surreal scenarios, including a scene where it confronts an eagle.

Many of these videos are labeled “AI Slop,” indicating their low quality and mass production. Despite this, some offer a rudimentary plot, signaling advances in the sophistication of AI-generated content.

YouTube has attempted to manage this influx of low-quality AI content by implementing a policy to block advertising revenue sharing from channels that primarily post repetitive or “fraudulent” content.

A YouTube spokesperson emphasized that all uploaded content must adhere to Community Guidelines.

After the Guardian inquired about certain channels from June’s fastest-growing list, YouTube confirmed the removal of three such channels and the blocking of two others, though they did not disclose specifics.

Experts indicate that AI-generated videos signal a new phase of internet “Enshittification,” a term coined by Doctorow in 2022 to describe the decline in online user experiences as platforms prioritize their own gains over quality content delivery.

“AI Slop is flooding the platform with content that is essentially worthless,” noted Dr. Akhil Bhardwaj, an associate professor at Bath University. “This enshittification has damaged the quality of the Pinterest community and overwhelmed YouTube with subpar content aimed solely at revenue generation.”

“One way social media companies could regulate AI Slop is by ensuring it remains unmonetizable.”

Ryan Broderick, who writes the popular Garbage Day Newsletter on internet culture, described YouTube last week as a “dumping ground for AI shorts utterly devoid of substance.”

Other platforms like Instagram also showcase a plethora of AI-generated content. For instance, one popular video features a blend of celebrity heads and animal bodies, such as “rophant” (Dwayne Johnson paired with an elephant) and “Emira” (Eminem as a gorilla), attracting 3.7 million views here.

On TikTok, numerous AI-generated videos are going viral, including one titled “Abraham Lincoln Blogging”, showcasing his unfortunate trip to the opera, and another with cats in Olympic diving events. These videos capture the playful, quirky spirit characteristic of the internet.

Instagram and TikTok have announced that all realistic AI content should be labeled. Videos suspected of being AI-generated from these platforms are cross-verified with the DeepFake Detection Service provider Real Defender.

Here are the channels showcasing AI videos for July: