In a year dominated by the booming AI industry and an overwhelming flood of digital creations, Merriam-Webster has crowned «slop» as its 2025 Word of the Year. This four-letter word acts as a judgment on the sprawling glut of low-quality content now clogging screens and social media feeds everywhere. 

Originally used in the 1700s to refer to soft mud and in the 1800s to describe food waste or rubbish, «slop» now takes on a decidedly 21st-century twist. Merriam-Webster defines it as «digital content of low quality that is produced usually in quantity by means of artificial intelligence.» 

Think ridiculous videos, glitched-out ads, fake news that almost fools you, crappy AI-authored books and, yes, talking animals. Now, even luxury brands like Valentino are pushing out «slop» ads. 

«Like slime, sludge and muck, slop has the wet sound of something you don’t want to touch,» Merriam-Webster quipped in its announcement, capturing a widespread cultural mood that’s part bemusement, part exasperation with today’s worsening AI landscape.

Read also: $1B for AI Slop? Why Disney Is Spending Big and Bringing Its Iconic Characters to OpenAI

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2025: A year defined by the AI content deluge

Tech platforms, both large and small, have grappled with the surge of generative AI content in 2025, from deepfakes to clickbait-style creations that prioritize volume over value. The wave of AI slop reflects not just how easy it’s become to generate content at scale, but also how little of it often resonates meaningfully with human audiences. 

Merriam-Webster’s editors say the word stands out because it captures both a cultural trend and a collective sentiment — one that’s less about fear of technology and more about poking fun at how mindlessly content can spread. 

Other words that shaped 2025

While slop snagged the top spot, Merriam-Webster also highlighted other terms that defined the year’s discourse, including:

• 67, a viral slang term born on social media, delighting Gen Alpha with an inside-joke energy.
• Performative, used to call out behavior done for show or clout rather than substance. 
• Touch grass, a phrase urging people to disconnect from digital obsession and reconnect with the real world. 
• Gerrymander and tariff, words driven by political and economic headlines. 

These picks show the breadth of public interest in 2025, ranging from internet culture to politics to how we live with technology. 

A global linguistic snapshot of the past year

Merriam-Webster isn’t the only publication weighing in on the year’s language. Here are some other 2025 Words of the Year:

• Oxford University Press chose «rage bait,» highlighting content designed to spark outrage and engagement online. 
• Macquarie Dictionary in Australia spotlighted «AI slop,» which is similar to Merriam-Webster’s theme of digital clutter. 
• Cambridge Dictionary picked «parasocial,» focusing on one-sided relationships with online personalities and AI chatbots. 
• Dictionary.com embraced the slang term «67,» a viral and almost meaningless expression that captured a slice of youth culture.

Together, these choices mirror a generation negotiating fatigue, fascination and frustration with the digital world. 

Why it matters

For a tech-savvy audience, slop isn’t just a funny word; it’s a symptom of deeper trends in AI deployment, content moderation and cultural perception. Our CNET experts have covered AI slop in depth, from defining what it is and how it’s showing up on the internet and in commercials, to analyzing how it’s turning social media into a wasteland. 

As tools for automatic generation become increasingly common and easier to use, the signal-to-noise ratio in digital spaces will only become more pronounced and important. Whether you’re building apps, curating feeds or trying to avoid the next wave of meaningless memes, the 2025 Word of the Year is a reminder that quality still counts and sometimes language itself can call that out with perfect clarity.

Read more: Why Time Magazine Dubbed ‘AI Builders’ Person of the Year

Whether it is their convenience, affordability or retro aesthetic, wired earbuds have made a comeback in recent years. Few pairs are more iconic than these Apple EarPods, which make an amazing stocking stuffer for the cool college student or vintage fashion enthusiast on your list this year, and now you can snag a pair for a record low $10. Just don’t wait too long if you want to guarantee that they arrive before Christmas.

Apple has three versions of the EarPods available, and they are all 47% off right now at Amazon. You can get them with a USB-C cable, a 3.5mm aux cable or the Lightning cable port, though this will only be compatible with the iPhone 14 and older. The cables also have a built-in remote so you can easily skip songs and adjust the volume on the fly, and they are equipped with a microphone so you can take voice calls as well.

Why this deal matters

This is the lowest price we have seen for these iconic wired Apple earbuds. They are nearly half off right now, and are a great stocking stuffer for just $10. Plus, all three versions are on sale so you can use them with any device.

Two decades after it ignited a market for robot vacuums in homes, iRobot has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The company, best known for its Roomba robot vacuums, entered the filing late Sunday night after months of warning signs and financial pressure.

Under the proposed restructuring, iRobot will be acquired by its primary manufacturing partner, China-based Shenzhen Picea Robotics.

The company said it will continue to offer robots and smart home devices to consumers.

Massachusetts-based iRobot, which launched the first Roomba in 2002, was once synonymous with the category it helped invent. But years of mounting robot vacuum competition, particularly from Chinese brands like Ecovacs and Roborock, have eroded its market share.

An attempted lifeline came in the form of an Amazon acquisition in 2022, which promised to bolster iRobot’s position in the smart home space. However, that deal was ultimately scuttled by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic, leaving iRobot to fend for itself amid fierce competition.

In response, iRobot revamped its product line and worked with Picea to bring newer models to market, while also slashing prices to stay competitive. Despite those efforts, the company continued to lose ground. US tariffs didn’t help.

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What the iRobot bankruptcy means for you

The acquisition by Picea, a contract manufacturer that already builds many of iRobot’s products, is intended to allow operations to continue without interruption.

«Today’s announcement marks a pivotal milestone in securing iRobot’s long-term future,» Gary Cohen, iRobot’s chief executive officer, said in a statement Sunday. «The transaction will strengthen our financial position and will help deliver continuity for our consumers, customers, and partners.» 

But while iRobot products remain on sale through major retailers including Amazon and Best Buy, whether you should still buy one, given the bankruptcy filing, is a complicated question.

«This will rightly have prospective buyers questioning whether to add one to their cleaning arsenal despite the company’s promise to continue operating without disruption,» CNET shopping expert Adam Oram said. «I wouldn’t advise that shoppers rule out a Roomba on this news alone, with many discounted Roomba deals still offering great value even if the longevity of the product remains unknown.»

Oram notes that iRobot’s products are highly rated among users.  

But smart home history isn’t exactly full of happy endings. Support can disappear quickly when companies change hands, and even well-intentioned promises can get lost in the shuffle of restructuring.

So yes, you can still buy a Roomba, and in the short term, it’ll likely work just fine. But if you’re shopping for a robot vacuum with years of app updates and new features in mind, you might want to look at Roomba alternatives from brands with a clearer future. Oram suggested Roborock, Ecovacs and Eufy, in particular.

iRobot, founded in 1990, says it plans to be in the game for the long haul.

«By combining iRobot’s innovation, consumer-driven design, and R&D with Picea’s history of innovation, manufacturing, and technical expertise,» Cohen said in the company’s statement, «we believe iRobot will be well equipped to shape the next era of smart home robotics.»