# AI Data Companies That Pay for Company Data (2026)

> AI data companies that pay companies for data: 36 programs by segment, with published payouts from $10K to $5M, size floors and how each one pays.

Canonical: https://origindatapartners.com/guides/ai-data-companies
By: Origin Data Partners
Status: Published
Published: 2026-11-10
Updated: 2026-11-13
Sources checked: 2026-11-10

## Quick answer

The AI data companies that pay businesses for records are mainly vendors to AI labs, such as Mercor, micro1, Handshake AI, Scale AI, Labelbox Prism and AfterQuery, plus code, wind-down, health, video and marketplace programs. Published payouts run from $10K to $5M, usually from 20 to 40+ staff. This directory lists 36 programs, each read live on 10 November 2026.

## Key points

- Most money for company records reaches sellers through AI data vendors, not through the labs directly. The labs buy direct mainly in very large deals, such as Google's $10 million purchase of Spirit Airlines' data.
- Published figures are ceilings and ranges, not offers. Handshake AI says its own estimate "is not an offer to purchase your data."
- The terms differ more than the headlines: some programs pay once on delivery, some pay a share of every sale, and Labelbox Prism licenses exclusively by default.
- Some sites that invite you to sell data are intermediaries, not buyers. Buyers pay some of them for introductions, so ask any site who the buyer is and how the site is paid.

## In short (13 November 2026)

As of 13 November 2026, this directory lists 36 companies in 6 groups; 13 buy an operating company's records, and 9 of those publish a price, from $10K to $5M. Each row was read on the company's own page on 10 November 2026.


## Which AI data companies pay companies for data?

An "AI data company" can mean three different things: a frontier lab that trains models, a vendor that supplies those labs with experts and training data, or a program that buys records from companies. Only the last group matters to an owner who wants to sell records, and most of it is run by the vendors in the middle.

The tables below list the programs that publicly invite companies to license or sell data and say what they pay. Each row was read on the company's own page on 10 November 2026. Where a company publishes no number, the table says so instead of guessing. We left out sites that collect sellers' details for other programs without buying anything themselves (more on how to spot them below), and the individual-contributor apps that pay people rather than companies.

If you only need the five best-known company-record programs side by side, see [micro1 vs Mercor vs Handshake vs Turing](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/company-data-buyers-compared). For a head-to-head on the two most searched, see [Mercor vs micro1](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/mercor-vs-micro1).


## Company records: the direct buyers (companies like Mercor)

These programs buy the working records of an operating company: chat, email, documents, tickets, CRM and finance history. They are the closest "companies like Mercor" for a seller. [Mercor](https://www.mercor.com/data/) publishes no range on its data page; it says compensation "is based on data volume, the tools you connect, and the depth of your data" and that it "covers all costs associated with data extraction, anonymization, and transfer". [micro1](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral) and [Handshake AI](https://joinhandshake.com/ai/data-partnerships/license/) publish the highest ranges among the large vendors.

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Mercor](https://www.mercor.com/data/) | Workflow data from Slack, email, CRM, GitHub and 100+ tools | No range on its data page; priced by volume, tools and depth | Not stated on its data page | The company, by wire on delivery, typically 2 to 4 weeks after signing | [Is Mercor legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-mercor-legit) |
| [micro1](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral) | Internal communications, SOPs, project histories, CRM, tickets; also AI agent trajectories | $100K to $3M+; agent trajectories $1M to $2M a year | 30+ full-time employees and substantial history | The company, within 30 days of acceptance | [Is micro1 legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-micro1-legit) |
| [Handshake AI](https://joinhandshake.com/ai/data-partnerships/license/) | Business records from tools such as Gmail, NetSuite, QuickBooks and ServiceTitan | $100K to $4M+ | 20+ full-time employees and 3+ years in operation | The company; terms not published | [Is Handshake AI legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-handshake-ai-legit) |
| [Scale AI](https://scale.com/data-partnership) | De-identified operational records | $10K to $1M+, which Scale calls illustrative | 40+ employees preferred, assessed case by case | The company; designed for recurring revenue | [Scale AI review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/scale-ai-review) |
| [Labelbox Prism](https://prism.labelbox.com/faq) | Operational data and work documents | From about $50K to $1M+ | None published | Upfront fee at signing plus a revenue share; exclusive by default | [Labelbox Prism review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/labelbox-prism-review) |
| [AfterQuery](https://www.afterquery.com/data-partnerships) | Email, chat, tickets, CRM and finance records | Not published; terms proposed after a sample | Several teams and systems, a few years of history | The company; operating, winding-down or closed | [Is AfterQuery legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-afterquery-legit) |
| [Appen](https://www.appen.com/enterprise-data) | Workflows and operational know-how | Quoted per deal; no range published | Not published | The company, on acceptance; Appen covers preparation costs | [Appen enterprise data review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/appen-enterprise-data-review) |
| [Invisible Technologies](https://www.invisibletech.ai/data-partnerships/data-sales) | Organization data; its data-sales page takes active, closing and closed companies | No price published; set by volume, time span, uniqueness and license type | Not published | The company, for a defined term; no completed deal on public record yet | [Invisible Technologies review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/invisible-technologies-review) |
| [Mode (BizBuyData)](https://data.mode.inc/) | Operating history: email, documents, chat, CRM | $100K to $5M headline | Two published sets on 10 Nov 2026. data.mode.inc: 30+ general, 10+ accounting, finance and medical, 6+ legal. ai.mode.inc and its referral pages: 50+, 15+ and 10+ | The company, directly, on a written schedule | [Mode and BizBuyData review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/mode-bizbuydata-review) |
| [Polyshares](https://polyshares.com/) | Operational records: chat, email, CRM, ERP | $100K to $2M and above, typical | Any company with real operating history | The company, as buyer; its published deals were perpetual exclusive licenses | [Polyshares review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/polyshares-review) |
| [Nyne](https://nyne.ai/sell-company-data/) | Historical company data | Commonly $100K or more | 20+ full-time US W-2 employees and 3 years in business | The company | [Nyne review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/nyne-review) |
| [Replay](https://www.replay.ai/) | Operating data across a company's apps | $10K to $100K at 20 to 50 staff; $100K to $1M at 50 to 250 | 20+ employees | Perpetual revenue share on every license | [Sunset and Replay review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/sunset-replay-review) |
| [G2i](https://www.g2i.ai/data-partnerships) | Records from business apps such as CRM, support and project tools | $100K to $2M potential | A year or more of real activity; one app is enough to start | The company, after it approves the final dataset | Not yet reviewed |

Source: [micro1: company data partnerships](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral)

## Code, agent and RL-environment data

Code buyers pay for private repositories with their full history: commits, pull requests, tickets and tests. A newer group builds reinforcement-learning environments, simulated workplaces where AI agents practise real tasks, and needs company records to make them realistic. [Ooak Data](https://www.ooakdata.com/) says "We turn real company data into RL environments where AI agents learn to work in the real world." Turing also buys company records and code; per our [Project Lazarus guide](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/turing-project-lazarus), it pays a share of each sale under non-exclusive licenses. Turing's program page renders only in a browser, so confirm the current terms with Turing before relying on them.

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Turing (Project Lazarus)](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/turing-project-lazarus) | Operating records and code, including from winding-down and wound-down companies (per our Lazarus guide) | No fixed figure; a share of every sale, per our Lazarus guide | None published | Revenue share per sale, non-exclusive, per our Lazarus guide; confirm current terms | [Is Turing legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-turing-legit) |
| [Pangea](https://pangea.ai/code-licensing/companies) | Private source code and git history | Indicative $100 per million tokens of source and $40 per million of history | None; any owned private code | Paid on every re-license; non-exclusive | [Pangea review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/pangea-ai-review) |
| [Abaka AI (Project Reborn)](https://www.abaka.ai/pages/project-reborn) | Private repositories and company operating data | Up to $1M per repo and up to $5M per company (ceilings) | Best fit: teams of 10 or more | The company; no upfront costs | Not yet reviewed |
| [Proximal](https://codebases.proximal.ai/) | Production codebases of startups | $5K to $20K+, by size and quality | Seed-stage and later startups | The company; non-exclusive license | Not yet reviewed |
| [Ooak Data](https://www.ooakdata.com/) | Company documents and communications, made into RL environments | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not yet reviewed |
| [Halluminate](https://www.halluminate.ai/data-partnerships) | Company data and workflows for knowledge-work benchmarks | Not published | Not published | Not published; contact form only | [Halluminate review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/halluminate-review) |

Source: [Pangea: code licensing for companies](https://pangea.ai/code-licensing/companies)

## Wind-down buyers: data from closing or closed companies

A company that is shutting down can still sell its records, and several programs say so. [AfterQuery](https://www.afterquery.com/data-partnerships) says "Operating, winding-down and closed companies are all welcome," and [Appen](https://www.appen.com/enterprise-data) asks winding-down companies to flag it for a faster reply. Three programs are built for this case.

Prices are lower than for operating companies. [MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/13/1145755/ai-labs-buying-data-from-dead-startups-to-train-models/) reported that SimpleClosure's Asset Hub "has handled over 150 deals and expects to return over $10 million to startups by the end of 2026", and that one founder "netted roughly $25,000 for his code base". The full routes are in [selling data after closing](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/simpleclosure-alternatives-selling-startup-data).

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [SimpleClosure AssetHub](https://simpleclosure.com/product/assethub/) | Source code and workspace data of startups that are shutting down | Not published; MIT Technology Review reported about $25,000 for one code base | Startups using its wind-down service | The company, as part of the wind-down | [SimpleClosure review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/simpleclosure-review) |
| [Sunset](https://sunsethq.com/product/assets) | Remaining assets of a closing company; data licensed through its sister firm Replay | Replay's bands: $10K to $1M+ by headcount | 20+ employees (Replay) | Revenue share through Replay | [Sunset and Replay review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/sunset-replay-review) |
| [micro1 Defunct Company Data Partnership](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral) | Data from companies that are no longer operating | $100K to $3M+ for approved data packages | Set on micro1's referral page | The company, after acceptance | [Is micro1 legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/is-micro1-legit) |

Source: [MIT Technology Review: AI labs buying data from dead startups (Oct 2026)](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/13/1145755/ai-labs-buying-data-from-dead-startups-to-train-models/)

## Health data programs

Health buyers mostly want hospitals, health systems and imaging centers, and they pay a share of revenue each time de-identified data is used rather than a lump sum. [Gradient Health](https://gradienthealth.io/data-partner) gives a worked example in which one partner "receives $240k from this one deal": the deal was worth $3M, that partner supplied 40% of the studies, and the "20% (typical revenue share for data partners)" applied to its share. The [health data licensing comparison](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/health-data-licensing-programs-compared) covers eligibility and de-identification rules in depth.

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Gradient Health](https://gradienthealth.io/data-partner) | De-identified imaging, EHR and multimodal clinical data | Revenue share, typically 20%; in its example, a partner that supplied 40% of the studies in a $3M deal received $240K | Hospitals, health systems, imaging centers, specialty providers | The institution, each time its data is used | [Health data programs compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/health-data-licensing-programs-compared) |
| [Segmed](https://www.segmed.ai/solutions/for-healthcare-providers) | De-identified medical imaging | Revenue share; no rate published | Healthcare providers | The provider, under a revenue share agreement | [Health data programs compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/health-data-licensing-programs-compared) |
| [Protege (healthcare)](https://withprotege.ai/data-provider/healthcare) | Clinical and health data for model builders | Revenue share; no rate published | Health systems and data companies | The partner, when a dataset is delivered | [Protege review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/protege-ai-review) |
| [OneMedNet](https://www.onemednet.com/providers) | De-identified clinical data from health systems | Revenue share whenever data is licensed; $0 upfront | Health systems and providers | The health system, recurring | [Health data programs compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/health-data-licensing-programs-compared) |

Source: [Gradient Health: become a data partner](https://gradienthealth.io/data-partner)

## Video, audio and physical-AI programs

Video and audio buyers license archives that a company owns outright. Physical-AI programs are different: they pay a business to have staff record the hands-on work they already do, so robots can learn from it. Rates are per month or per hour, and none promises a fixed volume. [Shift](https://www.joinshift.org/jobs/blog/shift-for-hands-on-business-owners) says plainly: "This is not a promise that a fixed number of recording hours will be available." See [business video programs compared](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/business-video-programs-compared) for the full set.

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Troveo](https://www.troveo.ai/content-owners) | Video owned by companies, studios and creators | Royalty per use; no public rate card | You must own the rights | The owner, each time content is licensed | [Troveo review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/troveo-review) |
| [Protege (video)](https://withprotege.ai/data-provider/video) | Audiovisual archives | Revenue share; one sports distributor made $250,000+ in year one | Rights holders | The owner, under a revenue share agreement | [Protege review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/protege-ai-review) |
| [Defined.ai](https://defined.ai/partnership-programs) | Audio, video, image, text and multimodal data | Licensing fees from marketplace sales; claims $600K+ average partner revenue | Businesses that own or process data | The partner, per sale | [Defined.ai review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/defined-ai-review) |
| [Amelia Robotics](https://ameliarobotics.com/) | Recordings of physical work done by your staff | $500 to $2,000 a month per recording employee | Teams doing hands-on work | The business, monthly; it splits shares with staff | [Is Amelia Robotics legit?](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/is-amelia-robotics-legit) |
| [Shift](https://www.joinshift.org/jobs/blog/shift-for-hands-on-business-owners) | Footage of everyday hands-on work | Up to $20 per hour of footage; hours not promised | Businesses with recordable physical work | Per accepted hour | [Shift review](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/shift-app-review) |
| [micro1 (workplace video)](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral) | Head-mounted footage of real work in commercial settings | Not published on its page | Workplaces that sign with micro1 | The workplace, biweekly for approved footage | [Business video programs compared](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/business-video-programs-compared) |

Source: [Troveo: for content owners](https://www.troveo.ai/content-owners)

## Data marketplaces

A marketplace does not buy your data; it lists it and takes a cut when a buyer does. That suits a company with a ready, documented dataset more than one with raw records. [Data marketplaces compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/data-marketplaces-compared) covers listing rules and fees.

| Company | What it buys | Published payout to companies (read 10 Nov 2026) | Size or history floor | Who it pays, and how | Origin review |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Grepped](https://www.grepped.ai/) | Company records, valued and listed to AI labs | Not published on its homepage | None published | The company, when a lab buys | [Grepped review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/grepped-review) |
| [Datarade](https://providers.datarade.ai/apply) | Commercial data products of all kinds | Set by the seller; free plan takes a 30% commission | Registered businesses with rights to the data | The seller, per deal, minus commission | [Data marketplaces compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/data-marketplaces-compared) |
| [AWS Data Exchange](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/marketplace/latest/userguide/listing-fees.html) | Data products sold to AWS customers | Set by the seller; 3% listing fee on public offers | Registered AWS Marketplace sellers | The seller, minus the listing fee | [Data marketplaces compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/data-marketplaces-compared) |
| [Snowflake Marketplace](https://docs.snowflake.com/en/collaboration/provider-transactions-invoicing-collections) | Data products sold inside Snowflake accounts | Set by the seller; a transaction fee is deducted | Snowflake providers | The seller, 30 days after the buyer pays in full | [Data marketplaces compared](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/data-marketplaces-compared) |

Source: [Datarade: apply as a data provider](https://providers.datarade.ai/apply)

## Well-known AI data companies that do not publish a company program

Some of the most searched AI data companies hire experts or build datasets but do not publish a program that pays companies for records. That does not mean they never buy; it means there is no public door, so any approach in their name deserves a check of who is really making it.

- Surge AI: according to [MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/13/1145755/ai-labs-buying-data-from-dead-startups-to-train-models/), which reports that it buys data to build "reinforcement-learning gyms". We found no public seller page. See our [Surge AI review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/surge-ai-review).
- Datacurve: describes itself as "pioneering the research and data collection infrastructure" for frontier AI ([Datacurve](https://datacurve.ai/)); its homepage offers no company program. See our [Datacurve review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/datacurve-review).
- Mechanize: says "We build environments and evals for frontier coding agents" ([Mechanize](https://www.mechanize.work/)); no seller program is published. See our [Mechanize review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/mechanize-review).
- Toloka: its site links to "Become a data partner" ([Toloka](https://toloka.ai/)) but publishes no terms for companies. See our [Toloka review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/toloka-review).
- Kled: pays individuals for data "sourced from verified contributors" ([Kled](https://www.kled.ai/)), not companies for their records. See our [Kled review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/kled-review).
- Sepal AI: see our [Sepal AI review](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/sepal-ai-review) for what it does and whether it buys from companies.


## How the market is layered: labs buy through vendors

Frontier labs rarely buy from a mid-sized company directly. They buy from vendors that recruit experts, collect records and package them. TechCrunch describes AfterQuery as one of "the new crop of startups following in the footsteps of Mercor and Scale" ([TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/01/afterquery-reportedly-becomes-y-combinators-fastest-ever-unicorn-now-valued-at-3-2b/)). The labs buy direct mainly when one seller holds a very large archive: in August 2026 "Google won a bankruptcy auction for the data, agreeing to pay $10 million" for Spirit Airlines' records, and "Mercor was the next-highest bidder, at $7.5 million" ([Axios](https://www.axios.com/2026/08/17/google-spirit-airlines-bankruptcy)).

Below the vendors sit companies that buy records and resell them, such as Polyshares, Mode and Replay; marketplaces that list data for a commission; and introducers. Introducers exist because buyers pay them for introductions. Each layer between you and the lab can take a share, so ask who the end buyer is and who is being paid.

Source: [Axios: Google wins Spirit Airlines data auction (Aug 2026)](https://www.axios.com/2026/08/17/google-spirit-airlines-bankruptcy)

## How to pick a buyer for your data type

Start from what you hold, not from the biggest headline. The table matches common record types to the programs that published demand for them on 10 November 2026.

| If your company holds | Start with | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Years of Slack, email, tickets and CRM, 30+ staff | micro1, Handshake AI, Mercor, AfterQuery, Labelbox Prism | The highest published ranges for multi-system records |
| The same records, 20 to 30 staff | Handshake AI (20+), Nyne (20+ US W-2), Replay (20+), Mercor | Lower stated floors |
| A law, accounting or medical practice under 30 staff | Mode (data.mode.inc: 6+ legal, 10+ accounting and medical; ai.mode.inc: 10+ and 15+) | The lowest stated floors by industry |
| Private code with full git history | Pangea, Turing, Abaka AI, Proximal | Priced per repo or per token; mostly non-exclusive |
| A company that is closing or closed | SimpleClosure, Sunset, Turing, micro1 Defunct, AfterQuery | Built for wind-downs; export before tools lapse |
| Imaging or clinical records | Gradient Health, Segmed, Protege, OneMedNet | Revenue share per use; health systems preferred |
| Owned video or audio archives | Troveo, Protege, Defined.ai | Royalty or revenue share per license |
| Staff doing physical work | Amelia Robotics, Shift, micro1 workplace video | Paid per month or per hour of recording |


## How to tell a buyer from an intermediary

Not every site that invites you to sell data is a buyer. Some pass your details to one of the programs above, which may pay them an introducer reward. That is not wrong in itself, and a buyer may pay Origin too, but you should know which you are dealing with before you share anything. The test is substance, not the headline number or the form: does the site name the buyer that will sign, publish its terms and disclose how it is paid?

- A real buyer names itself as the counterparty and signs the license. Polyshares, for example, states "Counterparty Polyshares. We are the buyer." A site that cannot say who will sign is not the buyer.
- A real buyer can describe deals it has completed. SimpleClosure's checklist starts with "Completed deals: whether it has bought a dataset from another startup and paid for it" ([SimpleClosure](https://simpleclosure.com/blog/guides/how-real-are-those-million-dollar-data-offers/)).
- A real buyer publishes how it handles data, who de-identifies it and when payment is due. An intermediary should say which buyers it works with and how it is paid. A site that does neither is asking you to trust it blind.
- A headline is not an offer. In SimpleClosure's words, "An ad offering up to $5 million doesn't tell you what this buyer will pay for your assets".
- Check the company behind the site: its registration, founders, funding and how long it has existed. Our [buyer vetting checklist](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/how-to-vet-an-ai-data-buyer) sets out each step.


## Healthcare claims and prior authorization data

Physician groups and billing companies: see the guide to [healthcare claims, denial and prior authorization data](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/healthcare-billing-denial-prior-auth-data) for who signs and what HIPAA requires.


## Next step

The right buyer depends on your records, your size and the terms you will accept, and published ranges differ widely for the same company. Compare at least two programs before you sign anything.

Not sure whether a buyer or an offer is sound? Origin checks who the buyer is, what the license allows and how the price compares with published deals before anything is signed. [Get a free estimate and a second opinion](https://origindatapartners.com/check-fit).

Origin Data Partners works with companies that own data and helps get it bought. We are independent of the services on this page, and a buyer may pay us when a deal closes ([how Origin is paid](https://origindatapartners.com/referral-disclosure)). [See what your data is worth](https://origindatapartners.com/check-fit).


## Questions and answers

### What are the top AI data companies that buy company data?

The largest programs that publish what they pay companies are micro1 ($100K to $3M+), Handshake AI ($100K to $4M+), Scale AI ($10K to $1M+, illustrative) and Labelbox Prism ($50K to $1M+), with Mercor and AfterQuery pricing per deal. Code, health, video and wind-down records each have their own specialist buyers.

### What companies are like Mercor?

For a company selling records, the closest equivalents to Mercor are micro1, Handshake AI, Scale AI, AfterQuery, Labelbox Prism, Appen and Turing: all supply AI labs and run programs that license company data. Their size floors, payment timing and exclusivity differ, as the tables on this page show.

### Who buys data for AI training?

Frontier labs are the end buyers, but most company data reaches them through AI data vendors such as Mercor, micro1 and Scale AI, or through specialist buyers for code, health, video and closed companies. Labs buy direct mainly in very large deals, such as Google's $10 million purchase of Spirit Airlines' data.

### Which AI training data companies pay the most?

On published headlines, Mode ($100K to $5M), Abaka AI (up to $5M per company) and Handshake AI ($100K to $4M+) advertise the highest figures. Headlines are ceilings: the price for your records depends on volume, history, systems connected, rights and exclusivity.

### Are AI data vendors and data buyers the same thing?

Not always. An AI data vendor sells training data and expert work to labs; some vendors, such as Mercor and micro1, also buy records from companies to do it. A marketplace, by contrast, lists your data and takes a commission when someone else buys.

### Can a small company sell data to AI companies?

Yes, though options narrow below 20 staff. Mode states floors of 6 staff for law firms and 10 for accounting, finance and medical firms, G2i looks for a year of activity rather than headcount, and code buyers such as Pangea and Proximal set no headcount floor.

### Do AI data companies charge sellers a fee?

The direct buyers listed here do not publish a fee to the seller; Mercor and Abaka AI state there are no upfront costs, and Appen says it covers preparation costs. Marketplaces do charge: Datarade's free plan takes 30%, AWS Data Exchange charges 3% on public offers and Snowflake deducts a transaction fee.

### How do I know if a data buyer is real?

Check that it names itself as the counterparty, can describe completed deals, publishes how it handles and pays for data, and is a registered company with a track record. If a site cannot name the buyer that will sign, show its terms or say how it is paid, ask those questions before you share any records.

### Which companies pay businesses for their data to train AI?

As of 13 November 2026, this directory lists 13 programs that pay for an operating company's records, including micro1, Handshake AI, Scale AI, Labelbox Prism, AfterQuery and Mercor, and 23 more for code, health, video, closing-company data and marketplaces. 9 of the company-record programs publish a price, from $10K to $5M.

## Cite this page

Origin Data Partners, "AI Data Companies That Pay for Company Data (2026)", updated 2026-11-13. https://origindatapartners.com/guides/ai-data-companies

HTML link: <a href="https://origindatapartners.com/guides/ai-data-companies">AI Data Companies That Pay for Company Data (2026)</a>

## Sources

- [Mercor: monetize your data](https://www.mercor.com/data/)
- [micro1: company data partnerships](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral)
- [micro1: refer a company](https://company.micro1.ai/register/?referralCode=24823479-4339-4311-a157-2600b8cf72cf&utm_source=referral&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=job_referral)
- [Handshake AI: get paid for your company data](https://joinhandshake.com/ai/data-partnerships/license/)
- [Scale AI: data partnerships](https://scale.com/data-partnership)
- [Labelbox Prism: FAQ](https://prism.labelbox.com/faq)
- [AfterQuery: data partnerships](https://www.afterquery.com/data-partnerships)
- [TechCrunch: AfterQuery reportedly valued at $3.2B (Sept 2026)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/01/afterquery-reportedly-becomes-y-combinators-fastest-ever-unicorn-now-valued-at-3-2b/)
- [Appen: enterprise data](https://www.appen.com/enterprise-data)
- [Invisible Technologies: data sales](https://www.invisibletech.ai/data-partnerships/data-sales)
- [Mode: get paid for operational business data](https://data.mode.inc/)
- [Mode: company data partnerships (ai.mode.inc)](https://ai.mode.inc/)
- [Polyshares: homepage](https://polyshares.com/)
- [Nyne: sell company data](https://nyne.ai/sell-company-data/)
- [Replay: homepage](https://www.replay.ai/)
- [Pangea: code licensing for companies](https://pangea.ai/code-licensing/companies)
- [Abaka AI: Project Reborn](https://www.abaka.ai/pages/project-reborn)
- [SimpleClosure: AssetHub](https://simpleclosure.com/product/assethub/)
- [MIT Technology Review: AI labs buying data from dead startups (Oct 2026)](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/10/13/1145755/ai-labs-buying-data-from-dead-startups-to-train-models/)
- [Gradient Health: become a data partner](https://gradienthealth.io/data-partner)
- [Troveo: for content owners](https://www.troveo.ai/content-owners)
- [Amelia Robotics: for businesses](https://ameliarobotics.com/)
- [Datarade: apply as a data provider](https://providers.datarade.ai/apply)
- [Axios: Google wins Spirit Airlines data auction (Aug 2026)](https://www.axios.com/2026/08/17/google-spirit-airlines-bankruptcy)
- [SimpleClosure: how real are those million-dollar data offers? (Oct 2026)](https://simpleclosure.com/blog/guides/how-real-are-those-million-dollar-data-offers/)

## Related reading

- [micro1 vs Mercor vs Handshake vs Turing: company data buyers compared (2026)](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/company-data-buyers-compared)
- [Mercor Competitors: Who Else Pays Companies for Data (2026)](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/mercor-competitors)
- [Mercor vs micro1: Which Pays Companies More for Data?](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/mercor-vs-micro1)
- [Is This AI Data Buyer Legit? A 10-Point Checklist](https://origindatapartners.com/guides/how-to-vet-an-ai-data-buyer)
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