Nypost Data Brokers Cashing In on Defunct Business Records for AI Training
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- •AI data brokers are rapidly acquiring data from defunct businesses.
- •Annual spending on data for AI training has surged to nearly $50 billion.
- •Anonymization of data is a key concern, with potential risks in protecting personal information.
A surge in AI data brokers is occurring as companies purchase and sell data from defunct businesses, including Slack messages and operational records, to train AI models. Companies like Micro1 and Mercor, valued in the billions, are leading this market, with spending on data by AI labs estimated to have increased from $2 billion to nearly $50 billion annually. Micro1 CEO Ali Ansari predicts this market could reach $1 trillion in the coming years. Data from businesses that have gone bankrupt, such as Spirit Airlines, is also being sold for substantial amounts. The data is typically anonymized to protect personal information, but concerns remain about the effectiveness of this process. The industry is rapidly evolving, with brokers claiming significant profits, and many companies are now seeking to monetize their data as a new revenue stream.
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