Bloomberg · Gemini · Claude · ChatGPT · Fortune Technology
Meet ‘trendslop,’ the new, AI-fueled scourge of workplace consultants everywhere
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Economists Mariana Mazzucato and Rosie Collington argue that consultants can, at best, give dubious guidance, and at worst, exacerbate government and private sector dysfunction.
Key facts
- To measure AI’s tendency to give responses aligning with trends rather than logic, researchers tested seven models, including GPT-5, Claude, Gemini, and Grok, across 15,000 simulations and scenarios
- Economists Mariana Mazzucato and Rosie Collington argue that consultants can, at best, give dubious guidance, and at worst, exacerbate government and private sector dysfunction
- An LLM is not the colleague who critically evaluates current ideas, looks into the contextual specifics, stress-tests assumptions, and pushes back when everyone gets comfortable,” the study authors
- Even when researchers reworded prompts or asked for pros-and-cons analysis, the AI models, in many cases, demonstrated a strong preference toward a similar business strategy
Summary
Instead of righting the ship, Mazzucato and Collington argued, these consultants created an “impression of value,” an illusion of helpfulness, and little else, all while the government and private companies burned money to hire them. In an era of AI that promises to save companies cash by automating white-collar jobs, the use of chatbots for guidance may be an appealing alternative for firms no longer willing or able to shell out for consultants. A recent study led by the Esade Business School at the Universitat Ramon Llull in Barcelona found that when various large language models (LLMs) were asked to provide guidance on a workplace issue, they gravitated toward a response that was most aligned with buzzwords, rather than providing guidance that best aligned with the scenario.