Mercor, a San Francisco-based startup, was featured on 60 Minutes on October 4, 2026, for its unique approach to AI training. The company employs a network of over 100,000 specialized freelancers, with roughly 30,000 working weekly, to evaluate and improve AI model outputs. The company’s revenue grew from roughly $1 million to hundreds of millions of dollars within two years, reaching a $10 billion valuation after closing a $350 million Series C in October 2025. Experts earn an average of $95 per hour, with rates between $20 and $375 depending on specialty, while daily payouts to contractors range from $1.5 million to $4 million. This exceptional growth made co-founder Brendan Foody a billionaire at age 23, while sparking debates about the implications of AI for the very professions these freelancers evaluate.
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