Merriam-Webster recently announced “slop” as its word of the year, according to a blog post published before Christmas. The choice was made by the dictionary’s editors.
Although the term has become overused and lost some of its impact throughout 2025, those who use it generally describe it as low-quality digital content created quickly using artificial intelligence. We think that’s a pretty good definition.
Look, I get that people talk trash about the metaverse, but it’s kinda weirding me out that even Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft – who’s sunk a ton of money into this thing – doesn’t like being called out on it. Like, they’re seriously investing billions, so it’s a bit of a downer to hear him dislike the criticism.
He wrote in an SN Scratchpad post ahead of the New Year:
We need to move past the debate about whether technology simplifies or complicates things and find a better understanding of how we think about each other now that we have powerful new tools that change our thinking. This is the key design question we need to discuss and resolve.
We’ve reviewed Satya Nadella’s post several times, but we’re finding it difficult to understand due to its overuse of business jargon. It makes us question whether AI tool Copilot was used to write it.
He perfectly captures the current situation: we understand the direction technology is taking, but now we need to focus on the more difficult task of ensuring it benefits the world.
Honestly, the technology is amazing, but it feels like nobody’s quite nailed how to use it properly yet. And with Microsoft, it’s not just about using it, it’s about figuring out how to actually sell people on it, you know?
Like it or loathe it, AI is going to dominate discussion in the games industry this year.
Several game studios, including Larian, are looking into how new technologies can be used in their games, and others are likely to follow. However, some studios, like Sandfall Interactive, have decided not to use these technologies again. Sandfall faced criticism after including AI-generated art in their award-winning game, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
It’s unclear how we’ll quickly solve the problems with generative AI. Because it learns from so much human work, ethical concerns will likely keep coming up.
The technology’s effects on both the environment and the economy will continue to be major topics of discussion.
This year could be crucial for Satya Nadella and Microsoft, as they’ve heavily invested in generative AI. Their success or failure with this technology could define their future.
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2026-01-05 15:18