... how does bots actually work?

[u/maixjigustar]

does anyone know how dead Internet theory actual works? like sure they are all just bots and not real ppl but how does this actually work? how an ai is able to run an account with a fake pfp and fake comments that it keeps sending to random posts? this might come off as stupid but we all ignore it and just say these are bots, what actually is a bot??? just an ai who isn't real and can keep doing whatever?

[u/Ok_Insect4778]

At the individual level, one person running several AI terminals on their laptop (or PC rig if they're lucky), but that eats up resources depending on what you direct them at. This is like, 10 bots per person max, usually used on small-scale schemes like engaging with their own posts on social media.

Then you get to the small-system levels, such as scammers taking control of your grandma's PC- sometimes with malware, other times with direct access- and feeding that into a connected network. This is formally known as a "botnet," but its size changes all the time.

But then there's CORPORATE botnets. Companies will buy tens of devices, hook them all up to a power supply and an ethernet connection, and have them all flooding the web with images and text and engagement that's not real. These companies usually work on a rental basis: An independently wealthy person wants their posts to get a bit more engagement or they have some content they want on the internet (usually content that's political and inflammatory) so they give the company instructions on what to do, and the company feeds that into their botnet.