Our big “Future of the Web” research report says that people hate sites that are robotic. They hate digital experiences, things that feel synthetic.
Does it really need to be like this?
The first sites I built in the ‘90s were all by hand. There were no CMSes. Then we hooked up databases to websites. In 2000, browsers added a way to let people make content bold and add links and images. From there, filling websites became a big machine, an assembly line. That’s who I work with. Large sites with large teams making thousands of new stories every day for millions of visitors.
You NEED a machine for that.
Heck, if you want to compete, you NEED AI for that.
But does it have to feel like robots made it?
Two-thirds of people can’t name a single brand that’s doing AI well in their own messaging. They can’t name one.
So the bad news is: everything is terrible.
I guess the good news is: maybe YOU can be the one who isn’t terrible?
And if you do manage to cut through all of the AI slop and reach people with a story that’s organic and human, one that feels like a person made it, maybe your audience will stick around and your business will win.
Brian Alvey 