Tobias Lütke says unchecked AI output can burden colleagues with polished-looking emails and code that still require hours of revision.
Shopify CEO Tobias Lütke is warning that careless use of artificial intelligence can reduce productivity instead of improving it. He says employees are sending unexamined emails and code that colleagues must then review and repair.
Lütke calls these outputs “slop grenades” because they look finished on the surface but create more work for the people who receive them. In an interview, he said AI should help employees synthesize information rather than produce long, unchecked messages that waste readers’ time.
The criticism marks a shift from Lütke’s earlier push for employees to treat AI use as a baseline expectation. His latest comments focus less on whether workers use AI and more on whether they take responsibility for the results.
The issue is part of a broader debate over “workslop,” a term researchers use for polished-looking AI output that lacks the details needed to be useful. A survey by BetterUp Labs and Stanford’s Social Media Lab found that 52.7% of U.S. desk workers reported sending workslop to colleagues, while 38% said they had received it and spent an average of 3.4 hours per month revising it.
Examples include structured emails with broken links and unnecessarily complicated code. Recipients also reported that workslop damaged workplace relationships, making senders appear less competent or friendly and reducing the desire to collaborate with them.
Lütke’s warning reflects a growing concern among technology leaders: AI can increase output quickly, but without review and accountability it can also shift hidden cleanup costs onto everyone else.
