I feel AI is at an interesting point right now. The technology continues to improve but its public perception can’t outpace a rising cascade of detractors.

Surprisingly, the demographic that usually champions emerging innovation is actually the group that is starting to lash out.

Young people aren’t happy.

Enthusiasm for AI is starting to wane.

Multiple times this graduation season, high profile leaders have been booed for mentioning AI advancements at commencement ceremonies. Of course, the jeers can be attributed to the obvious: AI is taking entry level jobs from the graduating students sitting in the seats at those ceremonies. I would be mad too.

But it seems like young and old people alike are starting to get more irritated instead of awed by AI’s capabilities. Even as AI learns more, those of us who are non-robots are being inundated with generative AI content that doesn’t even try to mask its origin.

It goes beyond em-dashes, buzz words, and formatting. AI-produced work is no longer the exception—it’s the rule—and perhaps that is why a lot of the stuff people are feeding to ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini/etc. is being immediately labeled as slop. It is all just so similar and at times too perfect.

I oversee a team that is split right down the middle. Some are AI experts and strategically use it in their work while others are very knowledgeable about it but prefer to use their own generative talents to complete work. But I think what I can say about my team is that they know a personal touch is still very much necessary to make work shine.

Relying on AI to write all emails, spit out 20-page plans, and write your LinkedIn posts is no longer the way to go. People see right through it and they are no longer saying, “Hey, that person is so innovative.”

Rather, their thinking is, “Hey, that person is so lazy.”

My philosophy with AI is still the same: We need to know it inside-and-out but we should utilize it more as an idea generator as opposed to a project-completer. The creativity of a human brain still trumps the learned knowledge of a robot brain. Don’t Blink.