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The Enshittification of the Internet: Messy Aesthetics, Bait-and-Switch Monetization, and the Hope of AI
As we traverse the digital landscape, we can’t help but notice the internet’s descent into chaos. In his recent piece [1], John Herrman describes the “junkification” of Amazon, where a clutter of spam, sponsored products, and low-quality content has marred the user experience.
This phenomenon, known as “enshittification” by Cory Doctorow [2], is not unique to Amazon — it affects Google search results, social media platforms, and countless other corners of the internet.
But what if there’s hope on the horizon? As AI technology progresses, we may see a cleaning up of this digital mess, akin to how our physical world has already evolved [3]. Could artificial intelligence save us from the enshittification of the internet?
The Broken Promise of User Experience
As Herrman points out, Amazon’s search results are increasingly congested with sponsored items and SEO word salad, creating a trash pile that users must sift through to find what they’re looking for. The same can be said for Google’s search results, which have become a minefield of ads and irrelevant content. Social networks, too, are struggling to contain the tsunami of bots and spam[4].