Source: MIT Technology Review
Summary
Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, a platform that allows businesses to post small tasks for workers to complete, is facing an uncertain future. According to a report, the company is considering shutting down the platform or significantly reducing its scope. The platform, launched in 2005, has been used for tasks such as data labeling and content moderation. Amazon has not commented on the report.
Our Reading
The launch follows a familiar script.
Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, a platform that’s been around since 2005, is facing the chopping block. The platform, which allowed businesses to post small tasks for workers to complete, has been used for tasks like data labeling and content moderation. Because what’s more innovative than paying people pennies to do tasks that AI can’t quite do yet? The platform’s potential shutdown is just another iteration of the “we’re going to revolutionize work” cycle.
Author: Evan Null
