Sourcing Truth: A Future of Synthetic Information

Falling down the rabbit hole on the hunt for accuracy

Earlier this week, ZINE published Julia Dixon’s 3_TRENDS volume, an interview series, uncovering overlooked social shifts.

In our analysis of Neo-Luddism, we shared:

“Despite the pushback [on AI], advancements aren’t going away, with as much as 90% of online content predicted to be synthetically generated by 2026.”

After publishing, one reader reached out questioning the audacity of this figure. I also think it’s worthy of a follow up...

I thought the stat was hyperbolic, and considered this forecast and its likely reaction to be fitting for our trend around unchecked AI hype and “anti-tech” sentiment.

All “predictions” require a sense of skepticism — after all the future does not yet exist.

The “90%” was sourced via Futurism.com which reported the figure from the Innovation Lab of Europol, the European law enforcement group. Not a shabby source, I thought.