Social Impact Of AI

Not all engagement is created equal! Algo update! LinkedIn’s algorithm is now penalising accounts with lots of automated, AI-generated comments on their posts 🚫 Instead of helping, these repetitive or irrelevant comments, that repeat your post back to you parrot fashion, could actually be DAMAGING the reach of your favourite Creators, meaning you will see LESS of what you like in the feed! And they won't thank you for it! If you've been taught by some 'guru' that engagement always wins, and installed a chrome extension or third party tool to help you keep on top of it, please wipe that smug smile off your face! LinkedIn is on to you! You're damaging not only your own reach, but that of the people you have been attempting to build a robotic relationship with! Everyone knows I love AI - but the comments section is NOT the place for it! At You Need Nicki, we've always stood firm on the power of real, meaningful engagement. There's no shortcuts, you have to do the work. And we're super happy to see the Linkedin algorithm favouring genuine interactions that drive value again. Thoughtful comments, authentic conversations, and real connections. This is what we help our clients focus on: quality over quantity, with engagement that builds genuine connections and opportunity. Genuine engagement is a springboard for real life relationships - like the lovely Angie McQuillin here who is one of the many LinkedIn connections I have since had the pleasure of meeting in person. Pro tip: If you spot AI-driven, empty comments on your posts, consider deleting or blocking them to protect your reach and maintain a high-value feed. How can you spot an AI comment on your post? Drop your thoughts in the comments? 🤖 #LinkedInTips #SocialMediaStrategy #MeaningfulEngagement #AlgoUpdate

AI slop is everywhere on social media, but it looks like where there is long-form content the situation is worse. New research by Pangram Labs looked at over 1 million posts longer than 50 words across LinkedIn, Medium, Substack, X/Twitter, and Reddit to detect what proportion of those were AI-generated, and the findings aren't surprising, but for me they're certainly disappointing. All platforms they looked at featured content made by AI. The average AI rate across all items was 13.8%, but that varied depending on the platform. On four out of five platforms, longer content was more likely to be AI-generated than shortform content. Across all platforms, a quarter of long-form content (25.72% of items over 250 words) were fully AI-generated. And LinkedIn is the place where AI has been used the most for longer pieces. Just under a third of shorter posts (up to 250 words) were classed as AI-generated by the tool, and a whopping 41% of long-form content was flagged as created by AI. As one might expect, X/Twitter was the where the least amount of content is made exclusively by humans. Almost half of X articles were either fully AI-generated (23.9%) or AI-assisted/mixed (22.9%), with only 53.2% of X articles marked as fully human-authored. Substack came out as the positive surprise, with a fairly even split of AI-created content (12% for short-form posts, 10% for longer ones). The vast majority (78.1%) of long-form content on Substack was judged to be written by an actual person – hurrah! LinkedIn also had the highest AI share of all the platforms analysed: while the platform accounted for a third of scanned items, nearly two-thirds (62%) of all AI content flagged came from LinkedIn. It boggles my mind that people seem more willing to use AI on a professional platform where you're showcasing your expertise than on an anonymous board like Reddit. 🤦🏻♀️ They also looked at AI-generated comments, and again to the surprise of nobody who uses this platform, nearly a quarter (23.7%) of LinkedIn comments were AI slop. On Reddit, a whopping 98.1% of comments are made by humans. I'll link the full article in the comments.

Automated comments are getting the boot on LinkedIn. The platform is cracking down on comments left using third-party automation tools that bypass any type of human review. Gyanda Sachdeva, VP of Product Management at LinkedIn, shared that enforcement actions may include: 🚫 Removing them from the “Most Relevant” section 📉 Limiting distribution so they aren’t shown outside the commenter’s network ⛔ Restricting accounts that use these tools in severe cases Automated comments had been rampant for a while. These new enforcement actions should further reduce the generic comments that were previously used to game visibility. While AI tools have made it easier than ever to create content and automate engagement, more is not always better. Commenting can absolutely help you build an audience and get in front of prospects, clients, peers, and potential followers. It’s easy to see why some people turn to automation. According to LinkedIn, comments can drive 3x more visibility. And with LinkedIn adding impression counts for comments last year, it further signals how important they are. But I see commenting as a value game, not a volume game. Most AI-generated comments I’ve seen simply restate what’s already been said in the post. Even worse are the automated comments that are just a string of emojis. They’re not additive and don’t move the conversation forward. Yes, automation can give you scale without manual effort. But in many cases, these types of comments end up reflecting poorly on the individuals and companies posting them.

Those AI-generated LinkedIn comments you're so proud of? They're killing your credibility faster than spam Last year, my posts drowned in "Great job! "Thanks" "Interesting!" spam. Today? AI-generated essays that say nothing I watched engagement drop as authenticity died Then I realised: robots can’t build trust. Humans do AI didn’t raise the bar—it just made mediocrity sound smarter Authenticity is your unfair advantage 𝟱-𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗙𝗶𝘅𝗲𝘀: 1. Steal this template: “The part about [X] hit hard. How did you handle [specific challenge]?” 2. Add 1 personal detail: “This reminds me of when I…” (10 seconds). 3. Ask a short question: “Would this work for [industry]?” 4. Ditch the essay. Write like you’re texting a friend. 5. Set a 60-second timer. Overthinking = sounding like ChatGPT. Genuine comments take 30 seconds but: • Skyrocket your visibility (algorithm rewards real convos) • Make you memorable in a bot-dominated feed • Build relationships that turn followers into clients Will your next comment be forgettable AI fluff… or the reason someone DMs you? P.S. The best LinkedIn growth hack isn’t a tool. It’s you. “Agree? Drop your #1 tip for authentic engagement below ------- Hi I'm Adam Strong and I help founders scale, systemise, and exit businesses in 12-24 months—without losing their sanity Listen to the full episode with me and Ruben Hassid link below

We've crossed the point of no return! The lack of human input in the AI feedback loop is no longer an abstract concern. It’s showing up everywhere, including here on LinkedIn. With feeds dominated by AI‑authored posts, templated comments + auto‑written messages, we are losing what made LinkedIn valuable in the first place - genuine expertise, lived experience, and human judgment. AI should help us work, think + create. But when removing humans removes accountability, nuance, trust. The pattern on LinkedIn is a warning - AI as a substitute for reflection and conversation leads to being louder, not better. we're seeing a stream of generic ideas with very little signal. The path forward human‑centered AI - systems where people still own thinking, decisions + relationships, with AI playing a supporting role. We should be designing and using AI in ways that amplify human judgment, not erase it. https://lnkd.in/gq9WjTTd

Investors: Stop using AI comments. They're not helping you. They're not genuine. They're not building your brand, creating connections, or establishing relationships with the people you're trying to boost. Please take the extra two or three minutes to write a message worth someone's time. Put yourself in the poster's shoes: Would you rather receive a soulless auto-generated celebratory message? Or, would you rather get a thoughtful, intentional message calling you out directly, referring to your post, continuing the conversation, etc. and etc.? Think we both know what your answer would be. So: No more "Congrats!" messages. Be thoughtful. Be celebratory. Be insightful. Be yourself. This is sorely missed in the investor space on LinkedIn. No one will connect with if you if you constantly hide behind the glittering gold of AI. AI is cool. Sure. Stop using it in your organic engagement. P.S. Be honest... do you use AI comments?

Seems like there’s a new trend on LinkedIn. AI-generated comments. You can tell. They all have the same tone. The same phrases. “Flipping the script.” “Smart thinking.” “Great perspective.” Different people. Same voice. It reads less like a conversation and more like an instruction manual. The interesting thing is this: The whole point of commenting is to show your mind. Your perspective. Your reaction. Your curiosity. When AI writes the comment, that part disappears. It’s llike sending a cardboard cutout of yourself to a party. Technically you showed up. But nobody actually met you. I’m not sure why people do it. Maybe they’re addicted to speed. Maybe it’s the pressure to stay visible. Maybe it feels easier. But connection doesn’t come from efficiency. It comes from presence. So here’s a tiny experiment. Next time you read a post, pause. Notice what it made you think. What it made you question. What it reminded you of. Write that. Two honest sentences from a human mind will always feel warmer than ten polished lines from a bot. And if nothing comes to mind… That’s okay too. Sometimes the most human response is saying nothing.

This LinkedIn mistake is costing you job and networking opportunities. There is so much noise of AI generated comments replying to AI generated posts. And you don't even realize it. People can spot them instantly and so can hiring managers. So, no. Your generic "Great insights!" or "Thanks for sharing!" isn't building relationships. It's screaming "I'm not actually paying attention." And it matters A LOT because LinkedIn is about real connections and when you spam AI comments on AI posts, you're creating noise, not network. What to do instead: 1️⃣ Add value, not only validation Instead of "Great post!" try: "This reminds me of when I struggled with X. How did you handle Y?" 2️⃣ Use the 10-second test If you can't explain what the post was about, don't comment. Your silence is better than AI noise. 3️⃣ Be VERY careful about who you follow Who you follow and trust determines how you're gonna grow. So follow people who share THEIR insights, not AI generated cheat sheets. Your network isn't built by commenting everywhere. It's built by showing up authentically in the right places. PS: which image is generated by AI? 📌 Btw, I write a newsletter where I share how to build an authentic personal brand as a tech professional (using AI :) ): https://lnkd.in/g3cfac8z

If you're constantly using AI for generic commenting on LinkedIn and other socials, you're doing yourself and others a tremendous disservice. Those bland replies add zero value and they do not build connections or help your business. You build connections and help grow your business by genuinely engaging with others, and yes, even if it takes extra effort. That's exactly what gets remembered, and more than ever now because (sadly) a lot of people are defaulting to AI for commenting. If you want growth, comment like a human. It takes 10 extra seconds and makes 100x the difference.