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I signed up for an AI Data Training side gig and this is what happened

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An image of the assessment screen for an AI training website.

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If you’ve even looked for work casually recently, you’ve probably noticed an offer. Remote positions, usually several from the same company, with titles like “AI Prompt Writer” or “AI Training Specialist – Medical”.




If you’re like me, these entries piqued your curiosity. Is this a scam? And if not, what is it like to work for these companies?


Training process

An image of the assessment screen for an AI training website.

The training process varies the most between these AI trainings, with the main difference being that some require an assessment before even onboarding you.

It depends on whether you are applying for a more general or specialized role. They have surprisingly high standards for specialist roles and some even include video interviews which are asynchronous but more than I expected for a gig like this.


The generalist roles are more what I expected and will take pretty much anyone. You will be thrown straight into the training and registration process, which usually varies by project. You’ll be presented with a bunch of old AI challenges and then what you’re supposed to do with them is usually review them and rank the response based on a number of factors.

Again, these factors vary a bit, but you’ll usually get a grading rubric that includes metrics like “accuracy,” “truthfulness,” and even “harmfulness” (which can include anything from AI suggesting violence to perpetrating stereotypes).

It’s worth noting that while some of these companies pay you for the training and assessment process, others don’t.

Once you’re in, the process becomes simple.

After the training, you will be assigned to a project with a specific goal. This will sometimes lead to further training and sometimes not. The work will be added to your queue and you can simply pick it up, review the challenges you’ve been assigned, and grade or correct them as needed.


This continues at a steady pace until the work dries up, which happens quite regularly. This is the biggest downside of these AI training gigs.

An image of the login and tasks page on the AI ​​training site that says there are no projects available.

Projects are often short-term, and weeks or even months can pass between the end of one project and the start of a new one.

This means you can have steady work for a while and suddenly nothing, with no real communication. Some are kind enough to tell you about a week in advance when the project is going to end, but most don’t. There is simply a sudden announcement that the project is over and they move people to new projects as soon as possible.


To their credit, it appears to be true. Even at companies I’ve worked with very rarely, I’m always being moved to a new project, so I’m not expected to work daily or on a regular schedule.

This means there’s always work waiting for you if you need it… if there’s an open project you’re eligible for. It’s a good way to make some extra money when you need it, and they’re usually pretty good about paying you on time, which is more than I can say for some of the other freelance gigs I’ve done.

Are AI training roles worth it?

Screenshot of the app or role selection screen on the AI ​​training site.
Screenshot; no attribution required.

I’d say it’s a solid “maybe.” If you have no expectations of a regular job, this is a decent source of extra income for some people.


Unfortunately, salaries tend to be low. I’ve seen a range of $15-$18 an hour for generalist roles, which is what most people qualify for. Some places promise wages of up to $45 an hour for specialist roles, which in my experience is over the top. The actual pay per project has always been much lower and specialist projects have work available less often than generalist roles.

In the end, it will depend on your patience with monotonous, repetitive work. Nothing about these projects is glamorous and I wouldn’t call it very rewarding either.

As a source of emergency income? It’s always nice to have the option. You have nothing to lose by registering except for the time it takes to complete the training courses.

But if you want to make it your primary source of income? Not a great choice.

 
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