THE LAST OF US
and how to fight ZombAI's with Long Form Narratives
They are coming over the hill.
The ZombAI's. I can see them in the distance.
Relentlessly moving closer.
With fading eyesight it’s hard to make out more than a blurry outline. But it’s clearly coming my way.
Rumour has it they are flesh-eating replicator that will stop at nothing until they’ve devoured every last one of us.
They say that Zombie AI’s are mindless.
Heartless even.
It shuffles, stitches, and spits out content that looks real.
It doesn’t reflect.
It doesn’t feel.
It just feeds.
And the more it consumes, the more it spreads.
It will not stop. For anything.
Well, unless you take its head off…
But let’s try to keep this PG.
Sure, this might sound a little bleak.
A tad apocalyptic.
But let’s have a closer look and see what’s what.
What’s real anymore?
How do we distinguish what’s real and what’s not?
In a world where AI is rapidly reshaping how we consume information, the line between what’s genuine and what’s artificially created is becoming increasingly blurry.
We’re now surrounded by AI-generated content - text, images, videos - that’s so convincing, it’s nearly impossible to tell the difference.
Social media, in particular, is where this is most evident.
I see my teenage children bathed in the glow from their mobile phones, flicking through endless stories.
The pace is relentless.
The flood of mindless content washes over them. Consuming them and turning them into non-reflecting teenage zombies.
They stand no chance.
How should they be able to tell what’s real and what’s not?
How can I?
Since 2022, and the rise of user-friendly AI systems, more than 15 billion images have been artificially generated.
Fifteen billion.
Let’s put that into perspective.
Imagine a football field.
Now sprinkle 15 billion grains of sand across it.
Could that fill a bucket?
No. You could cover the entire pitch in a 5 cm thick layer of synthetic sand.
And it’s not just images.
The AI zombies are writing, too.
Today, it’s estimated that over 10% of all articles online are written by AI.
10%, you say? That’s hardly an invasion.
And you’d be right.
But they’re still coming over the hill.
Gaining strength.
By 2026, it’s expected that 90% of all online articles will be written by mindless, flesh-eating copywriters.
Not trying to be a Luddite here. I get it.
There are good reasons to use AI: efficiency, cost savings, profit…
But there are also less noble ones.
According to a report by Freedom House, a human rights advocacy group, generative AI has already been used in 16 countries “to sow doubt, smear opponents, or influence public debate.”
Ah well, I’ll just read a book then.
Nothing is more authentic than a good book.
You’d think.
But no.
AI-written books are flooding digital shelves so fast that Amazon had to limit self-published authors to three books per day.
In some cases, these books were even published under real authors’ names.
Jane Friedman, a genuine, warm-blooded human writer, discovered books published under her name.
Another author found 29 books released under hers. In just one week.
The ZombAI's are now at the city gates.
But what about sound?
Can we trust the spoken word?
Sadly, no.
In Slovakia, during an election, a fabricated story spread claiming that Michal Šimečka, leader of the Progressive Slovakia party, and journalist Monika Tódová tried to manipulate the election.
The story was supported by an audio recording posted on Facebook.
A recording that could have swayed voters.
But the voices were cloned.
It was fake.
A manipulation.
So is there any refuge left?
Any final outpost of authenticity?
Well… for me at least, there is:
Long-form narratives.
Yes, it might be old-fashioned.
Time-consuming to produce.
It doesn’t fit any social media format whatsoever.
But it has one thing in spades: authenticity.
The antidote lies in one word: effort.
Long-form audio requires a lot of it.
Darwin had something to say about effort.
Effort, in nature, is often a handicap.
Like the male peacock’s preposterous tail.
It makes the animal a sitting duck - drawing predators.
But that’s the point.
It’s a signal of strength: “I’m so fit I can survive despite this ridiculous decoration.”
Apparently, Mrs. Peacock finds that irresistible.
In today’s world, where ease is king, putting in effort might seem counterintuitive.
But that’s exactly what makes it valuable.
Effort is authenticity.
Effort is intent.
Effort is human.
And it takes real effort to make long-form narrative audio.
Creating something that feels real.
Something that resonates with truth—isn’t something you do overnight.
It takes hours.
Days.
Weeks.
Sometimes months.
And it’s nearly impossible to replicate.
It’s too layered.
Too emotional.
Too human.
You can hear it in the voice.
In the nuance.
The hesitation.
The sincerity.
The pause.
So should we be worried?
Yes.
The zombies are knocking at the front door.
But it’s not all gloom and doom.
In fact, it might be a blessing in disguise.
Because the zombies?
They won’t know what to do with the last of us.
Well - you, in fact.
If you’ve made it this far.
So here’s your cue:
Pick up the microphone and step out into the night.
About the author:
Nick Dunkerley // CEO at Hindenburg Systems, Keynote Speaker,
Nick Dunkerley is the founder and Director of Hindenburg Systems. He’s a keynote speaker, lecturer, and lifelong advocate for audio storytelling. With a background as a radio host, sound engineer, and producer at Danish National Radio (DR), he has spent his career exploring how audio can help us better understand the world we live in.
In an era of AI-driven misinformation, “fake news,” and the erosion of truth, he believes long-form radio is one of the most powerful ways to achieve authenticity.
Ironically, for someone who built an audio software company, he doesn’t actually like software. To him, it’s a necessity for professional audio production—but it should never get in the way of creativity. That’s why Hindenburg is designed to make storytelling as effortless as possible, a tool embraced by professionals around the world.
For Nick, it’s all about the story. Always has been. Always will be.
I I never would have started podcasting if it wasn’t for the auto-level and noise-reduction features in a minimalist interface
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