'There's a lot of desperation': older workers turn to AI training to stay afloat
4 hours ago
- #AI Training Jobs
- #Gig Economy
- #Older Workers
- Patrick Ciriello, a 60-year-old IT professional with a master's degree, lost his job in 2023 and struggled to find work, leading his family to live in motels and eventually sleep in their car for months.
- Ciriello eventually found work as an AI data annotator, training models like Google's Gemini and Meta's AI, earning $20-21 an hour—a significant drop from his previous IT salary, but enough to cover basic expenses with government aid.
- AI data annotation, or training, is an emerging 'bridge job' for older skilled workers (e.g., doctors, engineers) who face age discrimination and difficulty re-entering the workforce, offering flexible but unstable gig-based income.
- Rebecca Kimble, a 52-year-old emergency medicine physician, turned to AI training after career interruptions due to a DUI and breast cancer, now earning $30-$140 per hour irregularly while also working part-time as a veterinary technician.
- Anne, a 60-year-old with a PhD, left academia due to long Covid and now trains AI models for $25-26 an hour, finding it rewarding but demoralizing compared to her previous six-figure salary and career expectations.
- Older workers in the U.S. face significant challenges: those over 60 take 50% longer to find jobs than younger workers, and many are pushed out of long-term jobs before retirement, often without regaining prior earnings.
- AI training can be intellectually engaging but resembles gig economy instability, with variable hours, no benefits, and fears that AI may eventually reduce the need for human trainers, though some see it as a temporary stopgap.
- Despite concerns about AI replacing jobs, trainers like Ciriello view it as part of a historical technological transition, emphasizing the need for social safety nets to support workers during such shifts.
- Ciriello is preparing for a post-AI training future by developing a coaching practice and online course, betting on himself as he believes his current AI work may not last long-term.