Shopify's AI mandate produced messy 'slop grenades,' Tobias Lutke admits

Business Sep 19, 2026

Shopify made AI tools a must-have at work last year, but it hasn't gone as planned.

CEO Tobias Lutke admits the move has flooded the company with messy, low-quality emails and code (what he calls "slop grenades").

Now, employees spend extra time fixing these AI mistakes, making quality control a real headache.

Survey: 40% office workers faced 'workslop'

Shopify isn't alone here.

An April 2026 survey found that 40% of office workers have dealt with "workslop" (AI content that looks polished but lacks substance), costing big companies millions in lost productivity.

By September, most workers said they had negative attitudes toward the tech.