The journalists training AI models for Meta and OpenAI

Journalists are being hired to train AI models for companies like Meta and OpenAI through gig work platforms like Outlier. Outlier recruits journalism graduates and experienced professionals to perform tasks like labeling data, testing prompts, and evaluating AI outputs for factual accuracy and grammar. Challenges include inconsistent work availability, payroll issues, and psychological tolls from sensitive content. Some journalists view this work as necessary for supplementing income, while others fear it could make their traditional roles obsolete.

• Outlier is a platform for training AI owned by Scale AI.
• Journalists are recruited for their writing and research skills.
• Data annotation gigs pay around $35 per hour.
• Tasks include fact-checking AI model outputs for accuracy.
• The work provides an income option amid journalism job cuts.