The company, which provides data for firms such as Meta and Microsoft, is part of a growing trend of AI companies bypassing labor regulations by using freelance contractors in the Global South. This has led to accusations of creating "digital sweatshops" and a "race to the bottom" for wages. Despite the issues, many workers feel they have no alternative due to a lack of other job opportunities.
Key takeaways:
- More than 2 million people in the Philippines are involved in "crowdwork" for artificial intelligence (AI), often under exploitative conditions. They sort and label data for AI models, a labor-intensive process that is crucial for the accuracy and effectiveness of AI technology.
- Scale AI, a San Francisco-based start-up valued at $7 billion, owns a platform called Remotasks, which is used by at least 10,000 workers in the Philippines. The company has been accused of paying extremely low rates, delaying or withholding payments, and providing few channels for workers to seek recourse.
- Remotasks has been criticized for its labor practices, including frequently delayed, reduced, or canceled payments after tasks are completed. Workers, known as "taskers," often earn far below the minimum wage in the Philippines, which ranges from $6 to $10 a day.
- Government officials in the Philippines have expressed concern about the labor practices of platforms like Remotasks, but admit they are unsure how to regulate them. The Department of Information and Communications Technology, which regulates the tech industry, said it wasn't aware of how much workers make on micro-tasking platforms and that data annotation is an "informal sector" lacking regulatory protective mechanisms.