Mercor, a startup that connects human experts to train AI models, is paying more than $1.5 million per day to its global network of contractors, according to CEO Brendan Foody. Speaking on the TBPN show following the company’s latest funding announcement, Foody revealed that Mercor has grown rapidly and is now valued at $10 billion after closing a new round of investment. The company specializes in recruiting teams of professionals—spanning software engineering, finance, law, and medicine—to train AI systems for major tech firms, including OpenAI and Anthropic. Mercor currently employs over 30,000 contractors worldwide, many of whom are paid to provide nuanced, high-level feedback and instruction to help AI models understand context, judgment, and real-world complexity. Foody described this emerging field as a “new category of work,” emphasizing that humans are now teaching machines not just tasks, but the subtle decision-making and cultural understanding that only people possess. In a blog post, he wrote, “Millions of people will spend the next decade teaching machines the judgment, nuance, and taste that only humans possess. Instead of doing predictable work repeatedly, they'll teach agents how to do it once, so the agent can do it a million times.” The company’s rapid growth and high valuation reflect a broader trend in the AI industry: the rising demand for human-in-the-loop training. As AI chatbots become more sophisticated, companies are turning to human experts to refine their responses, improve accuracy, and ensure alignment with real-world knowledge and ethics. This shift has sparked what some are calling tech’s latest gold rush. Startups like Mercor, Surge AI, and Scale AI are attracting massive investments and creating new wealth for their founders. Surge AI CEO Edwin Chen, 37, is now worth $18 billion, while Scale AI co-founders Alexandr Wang, 28, and Lucy Guo, 30, have net worths of $3.2 billion and $1.4 billion, respectively, according to Forbes. Despite the lucrative opportunities, the work can be repetitive, mentally taxing, and sometimes disturbing. A recent Business Insider report spoke with over 60 data labelers globally, many of whom reported earning thousands of dollars a month but described the job as chaotic and emotionally draining. Foody told TBPN that an initial public offering (IPO) for Mercor is “potentially on the horizon,” though he did not provide a timeline. The company has not responded to requests for further comment from Business Insider. As AI continues to evolve, the role of human trainers is becoming increasingly vital—providing the essential layer of judgment and creativity that machines still struggle to replicate.