OpenAI is Reportedly Asking Contractors to Upload Real Work from Past Jobs
OpenAI requests contractors to submit real work files for AI training—raising IP and privacy concerns.
Matilda
OpenAI is Reportedly Asking Contractors to Upload Real Work from Past Jobs
OpenAI Asks Contractors to Upload Real Work Files—But at What Cost? In a move that’s reigniting debates over data ethics and intellectual property, OpenAI is reportedly asking third-party contractors to upload actual work products from their past and current jobs. According to a recent Wired report, the company—through its partnership with training data firm Handshake AI—is collecting real-world documents like Word files, PDFs, spreadsheets, presentations, and even code repositories. The goal? To train next-generation AI models capable of automating complex white-collar tasks. But legal experts warn this strategy could expose both contractors and OpenAI to serious legal and ethical risks. Credit: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto / Getty Images Why Real Work Data Matters for AI Training AI models learn by example—and the more realistic those examples, the better the output. Synthetic or artificially generated data often lacks the nuance, structure, and contextual depth found in authentic workplace …
