NYT Essay: AI Slopware Is Everywhere Now — and Nobody Is Using It
round · x · 2026-09-22
Technologist Paul Ford argues in a New York Times guest essay that AI-generated software has flooded the market.
- App Store listings grew an estimated 30% last year while downloads rose only 3% — AI has made writing code nearly free, but demand hasn't followed.
- He asks when we last marveled at a new app or game; era-defining hits like Slack or Candy Crush seem increasingly rare amid the flood of app slop.
- Ford's counterpoint: AI's real strength won't be replacing existing tools (people rarely switch software), but producing many small, purpose-built things that chip away at specific frictions in daily life.
More from AGI Musings
- AI Doesn't Have to Fail for the Bubble to Burst — Distillation and Cheap Models Could Do It — budputnal · 2026-09-22
- AI safety circle revives the oracle-vs-agent debate: a useful oracle may be impossible — davidmanheim · 2026-09-22
- Still true in September 2026: mistaking benchmarks for real progress is an AI industry flaw — luislamb · 2026-09-22
- Not All AI Workers Buy the 'AI Could Kill Everyone' Narrative, BBC Reports — austinc3301 · 2026-09-22
- What Does 'Slowing Down AI' Actually Mean? Anthropic Preaches Pause, Ships Models — Impossible_Truth_629 · 2026-09-22
- Understanding AI dissects Yudkowsky's new book: the case for AI doom isn't convincing — binarybits · 2026-09-22