Workers in India are filming jobs to train robots

Workers in India are being paid to record everyday tasks, providing video and other data for companies developing artificial intelligence that can control robots in the physical world.

Mohammed Ashim, a 22-year-old barber in Bengaluru, wears a head-mounted camera for five or six hours a day. It records his hands while clients’ faces are blurred. Ashim says the work pays well and that he is excited his razor skills could help a global technology company.

Rashdan Technologies collects workers’ footage and sells it to technology companies and research organisations. Co-founder and CEO Shahil Baig says the company pays $5 to $10 for eight to 10 hours of recorded work. Some clients now request four to six cameras around a worker’s head to capture more of a scene; Baig says workers are paid more for this data collection.

Humyn Labs founder Manish Agarwal says robot training needs recordings of varied tasks and environments, as well as information about movements and force. His company has 96,000 data collectors across Latin America and Southeast Asia, and filters, labels and packages their video for clients.

Labour researcher Bino Paul says it is too early to know whether the work will help workers or contribute to job automation. He argues that governments should regulate AI. Workers interviewed say the income matters, while concerns remain about consent and how their recordings may be used.