‘Clanker’ is the internet’s favorite slur—and it’s aimed at AI

AI skeptics have found a new way to express their disdain for the creeping presence of artificial intelligence: through slurs.

Out on the streets and in stores, people have begun harassing robots they encounter in the wild. (Anyone else feel a bit sorry for the robot?) Online, the internet has revived a Star Wars–inspired insult, “clanker,” with Google Trends data showing a spike in searches for the term in early June.

“POV: Me at the clanker rally in 2088,” one TikTok user joked. “Keep your oily soulless clanker hands away from my delicious human food,” another X user wrote in response to a clip of Elon Musk’s Optimus robot dishing out popcorn at the Tesla Diner (not a sentence I ever thought I’d write). 

The term has also been picked up by politicians. “Sick of yelling ‘REPRESENTATIVE’ into the phone 10 times just to talk to a human being?” Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) posted on X last month. “My new bill makes sure you don’t have to talk to a clanker if you don’t want to.”

While some direct their insults at the technology itself, others target those using AI systems. On one thread, suggestions for users of the xAI chatbot Grok included “Grokkers,” “Groklins,” and “Grocksuckers.” Meanwhile, on TikTok, someone coined “sloppers” for people becoming increasingly overreliant on ChatGPT.

The trend reflects a broader mood. Concerns about AI among U.S. adults have grown since 2021, according to the Pew Research Center. More than half (51%) say they are more concerned than excited about the technology’s rise, with worries ranging from AI taking away jobs to chatbot addiction.

Still, some see embracing new slurs—even those aimed at robots—as problematic, especially when they echo existing racial slurs or stereotypes.

Others simply fear they’ll regret their words later. As one X user wrote: “I don’t want to have to look a robot in the eye in fifty years and be like, “you don’t understand it was a different time…”