Blog > AI Marketing
Workslop: The Hidden Productivity Drain in the Age of AI
AI Marketing
MMA Dictionary
04 October 2025
Paylaş
When AI Outputs Look Good but Add No Value
Coined by researchers at BetterUp Labs and Stanford Social Media Lab, “Workslop” has entered the business lexicon to describe a new inefficiency of the AI era. First highlighted in Harvard Business Review, the term refers to AI-generated outputs that look polished but lack real value for workflows.
While companies continue to invest heavily in AI, as many as 95% report no tangible returns and “workslop” is increasingly recognized as one of the main reasons.
What Is Workslop?
Workslop refers to incomplete, irrelevant, de-contextualized, or half-baked AI outputs. They appear professional on the surface but ultimately shift the burden to others in the workflow, forcing them to fix, complete, or make sense of the content.
The result? A hidden productivity drain that slows down teams instead of empowering them.
Research Insights
- Among 1,150 employees surveyed, 40% encountered workslop in just the past month.
- These “looks-good-but-doesn’t-help” AI outputs waste time and energy across organizations.
- Marketing, content creation, and CX functions—where speed is prized—are particularly prone to workslop.
Why It Matters for Marketers
For marketing teams, workslop is more than a nuisance; it’s a risk:
• Off-brand or context-poor content damages trust and weakens campaigns.
• Shiny but useless outputs reduce real ROI.
• Teams spend more time correcting mistakes, draining their creative capacity.
How to Avoid Workslop
Researchers emphasize the need for leaders to build a purposeful AI culture with clear standards:
• Define intent and context before deploying AI.
• Develop prompt governance frameworks to improve consistency.
• Introduce quality metrics to systematically evaluate AI outputs.
From Workslop to Worksmart
Workslop shows that the illusion of speed can often lead to inefficiency. For marketers, the key takeaway is clear: don’t be fooled by polish—demand usefulness.
By shifting focus to purpose-driven, contextual AI usage, organizations can move from workslop to worksmart, turning AI into a true driver of productivity and trust.
Serkan Karaman
MMA EMEA Platforms Manager
AI Washing: The Hidden Risks in the Tech Industry
12 September 2024
Cookie Permission