This is the English version of a document I shared with my team at work. The original, in Spanish, used the term workslop instead of AI slop, but AI slop is more appropriate.
We write, sketch, and diagram to communicate, but also to think clearly.
Generative AI makes it possible to start from a rough idea and generate a professional document in seconds. But there is a downside: when time is short, we spend less time reviewing what we produce. We create documents that look professional, but contain meaningless details or filler sections. It is such a common problem that it even has a name: AI slop.
The main consequence of AI slop is the loss of trust.
Corporate writing, full of empty words, existed long before AI. The difference is that, before, if a colleague sent you a 10-page analysis, you knew they had at least spent time thinking it through. Today, when you detect AI-generated content with no real substance, the feeling of wasted time is immediate: there is an imbalance between production and understanding.
This manifesto aims to address AI slop, but it is not against the use of AI. The text you are reading was assisted by AI in many ways: researching articles, creating a first draft inspired by the Agile Manifesto, transcribing and translating voice notes, and finally, correcting and iterating.
Core Values
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Original thinking reinforced by AI, over automatic generation without critical review.
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Clarity with substance, over length without content.
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Declared and responsible authorship, over opaque delegation to the model.
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Trust earned over time, over apparent short-term efficiency.
Principles
If you can’t explain it, don’t send it
A deliverable you cannot defend or summarise in your own words is not finished. Sending something without fully understanding it transfers the cognitive load to the recipient.
The recipient is not your editor or proofreader
When you send AI slop, you ask someone else to do the work you did not do. That has a cost in time, attention, and trust.
Declare the use of AI
Transparency about how content was produced allows the receiver to calibrate their trust. Today, we cannot look down on the use of AI, but it is important to communicate the degree of validation and editing that was performed.
Brevity with substance beats length without content
One paragraph that actually says something is worth more than ten that only appear to. Aggressively editing AI output is part of the work, not a bonus.
Use AI to think better, not to avoid thinking
Writing is not just producing text: it is organizing ideas, identifying logical gaps, and committing to a position. Use AI to enhance that process rather than avoid it.
Tools do not have judgment; you do
AI does not know the audience’s context or the timing. You do. The added value lies not only in using a tool but also in applying your judgment.