How The Cringey OpenAI Brand Trip Proves Dead Internet Theory

About this episode

TL;DR: Dead internet theory is true, the influencer recession is upon us, OpenAI brand trip cringe, and the real meaning of AI psychosis. 

Courtenay consorts with Cousin Caroline, a friend of the pod and Bay Area native who currently resides in the belly of the AI beast—San Francisco. We discuss how a fringe message-board conspiracy theory became a mainstream talking point and what "dead internet theory" actually means for (human) internet users. While AI remains central to the theory, our discussion focuses more on some of the forces that brought us here: capitalism, greed, and enshittification (redundant?).

The so-called “enshittification” of the internet is inextricably linked to the “dead internet" conversation. It’s not just that bots are flooding the internet; it’s also that the internet is becoming more and more unusable for HUMANS. Even the parts of the internet that emerged organically, like influencing, inevitably become tools of capitalism, hollowed of authenticity and used merely as vehicles to sell us more stuff. 

But we may have reached a tipping point. According to NY Mag, we’re in an influencer recession—and it’s causing some content creators to stoop to new lows in pursuit of engagement. From ridiculous ragebait to AI slop to insane brand partnerships (OpenAI brand trip, anyone?), we’re sharing the wild ways influencers are trying to make ends meet. We’ll even journey over to LinkedIn to stalk a corporate slop-fluencer trying to reclaim the term “AI psychosis” (and failing). 

Finally, we attempt to end on a hopeful note with a report on platforms such as Spotify, Substack, and LinkedIn rolling out AI spam filters and detection tools to curb the flood of low-quality content crowding our feeds. We discuss whether this signifies a larger move to combat enshittification, or if it’s just a blip that will soon be overshadowed by the rapid acceleration of AI. 

Sources (unpaywalled!): 

Dead internet theory Atlantic article from 2021: https://archive.is/20260527091626/https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2021/08/dead-internet-theory-wrong-but-feels-true/619937/#selection-927.0-930.0  

Bots now make up over 50% of web traffic: https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://fortune.com/2026/07/23/dead-internet-theory-bots-agents-majority-web-traffic/

The “open internet” is at risk: https://www.techpolicy.press/the-open-internet-was-always-american-now-its-a-weapon/ 

AI model collapse: https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://www.forbes.com.au/news/innovation/is-ai-quietly-killing-itself-and-the-internet/ 

The influencer recession: https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://www.vulture.com/article/influencer-recession-audrey-peters-interview.html 

OpenAI brand trip: https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://techcrunch.com/2026/08/03/influencers-draw-backlash-for-attending-openais-first-luxury-trip/#google_vignette

Grace McCarrick on “AI psychosis”: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/gracemccarrick_i-went-on-openais-first-ever-brand-trip-activity-7489983409877049344-4XSx?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAACKWuaQB90OwxN2aP2bUxbkbCnJMLg5s_Ew