Appen is a technology services company that offers a variety of data annotation, data collection, and search engine evaluation services. Founded in 1996, Appen operates globally and employs over 1 million contractors worldwide. But is Appen a legit company to work for or partner with? Let’s take a closer look at what Appen does and how they operate.
What is Appen?
Appen is a technology services company focused on providing high-quality training data for machine learning and artificial intelligence systems. Their main service offerings include:
- Data Annotation – Appen contractors annotate images, text, audio and video to create training data for AI systems. This improves algorithm accuracy.
- Data Collection – Appen gathers speech, text, image and other data sources to build AI datasets.
- Search Engine Evaluation – Appen assesses search engine results to improve relevance and quality.
In addition to these core services, Appen also provides crowdsourced testing for websites, apps and other platforms. Their global crowd of over 1 million contractors provides scale and diversity for these various data services.
Appen’s Legitimacy
So what evidence indicates that Appen is a legitimate company?
- Publicly traded company – Appen is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: APX) with a market cap over $1 billion AUD.
- Long operating history – Founded in 1996, Appen has over 25 years of experience providing data services.
- Notable partners – Appen counts tech giants like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook among its clients.
- Positive online reviews – Current and past Appen contractors generally rate their experience positively.
- Industry recognition – Appen has received accolades for growth and innovation within its field.
Additionally, Appen’s website provides full contact information, executive biographies, press releases and SEC filings. All of this confirms Appen as an established public company.
Appen’s Business Model
Appen operates in the training data services industry. This involves providing the annotated data used to build artificial intelligence algorithms. Appen contracts out small data tasks to its global crowd of workers. These individual contributions are aggregated into full datasets. Appen then sells access to this data to tech companies to use in developing AI systems and improving algorithms.
It is this crowdsourcing model that allows Appen to rapidly scale across different industries and use cases. By drawing on a diverse global pool of contractors, Appen can assemble training data covering many languages, accents and image categories. This data breadth enables Appen to meet the needs of leading tech firms in developing cutting-edge AI.
Appen’s Reputation
Appen has developed a strong reputation based on its history of service, prominent client roster and public stature. Here are some testaments to Appen’s reputation:
- Solid client retention – Key accounts like Google have partnered with Appen for over 10 years.
- Industry awards – Appen has won awards for its innovative AI data services and strong growth.
- Featured press coverage – Mainstream media outlets portray Appen as a legitimate industry leader.
- Positive online reviews – The majority of feedback on sites like Glassdoor rate Appen highly.
Negative reviews do exist, but are reasonably limited based on Appen’s size and scale. Overall, Appen’s reputation remains that of a respected global company leading in the AI data space.
Working as an Appen Contractor
Appen maintains a contractor workforce of over 1 million worldwide. These contractors complete microtasks like data annotation using Appen’s AI Training Data platform. Units of work are called Human Intelligence Tasks (HITs) and usually involve very short, simple actions.
Appen offers flexible work-from-home contracting jobs. Contractors are paid per HIT or task completed. Earnings vary based on contractor locale, skills and speed. Most Appen contractors work part-time, averaging 5-20 hours per week. Full-time income levels require very high productivity. Training is provided and minimal tech skills are required.
Here are key aspects to working as an Appen contractor:
- Flexibility – Set your own hours and work location.
- Microtasks – Small, quick data annotation jobs like drawing boxes around images.
- Payment – Per task completed, average earnings of $9-14 USD per hour.
- Steady work – New projects regularly available for qualified contractors.
As with any contractor position, there are upsides and downsides. However, Appen provides plenty of legitimate work opportunities for those seeking part-time income or project-based work.
Appen’s Reputation Among Contractors
What do actual Appen contractors have to say about the company? Here are excerpts from current and past Appen workers:
Positive Feedback | Negative Feedback |
– “Great way to make extra money in your spare time.” | – “Pay rates are quite low for the time spent.” |
– “Flexibility to work anytime, from home is great.” | – “Inconsistent work availability and hours.” |
– “Easy to get started and they provide training.” | – “Can get boring doing repetitive tasks for hours.” |
– “Legitimate company, always pay on time.” | – “Lack of communication from company.” |
The majority of reviews highlight the flexible, easy nature of the work. Complaints focus on the monotony of data tasks and inconsistent work volumes. Overall, Appen contractors seem to validate it as a legitimate source of supplementary income.
Common Concerns about Appen
Despite Appen’s business model and reputation, some common concerns arise about the company:
- Low pay rates – Average $9-14 USD per hour, below minimum wage in some regions.
- Tedious work – Repetitively completing simple data tasks can be tiresome.
- Lack of communication – Some workers cite limited admin response to questions.
- Inconsistent work – Project volumes fluctuate, affecting hours and earnings.
While these are valid critiques, they seem consistent with other companies in the crowdsourced contractor space. Appen positions its roles as supplementary income opportunities, not full-time jobs. The company is also constrained by client budgets and data needs.
Overall, the core concerns do not indicate Appen is illegitimate. But contractors should have reasonable expectations going in regarding pay rates and working conditions.
Is Appen a Scam?
With any online money-making opportunity, the question of whether it is a scam arises. There are a few key indicators that Appen is not a scam:
- Real clients and business model – Appen works with major tech brands on core data services.
- Publicly traded company – Regulated and financially transparent as an ASX-listed firm.
- Direct payment – Appen contractors are paid directly for completed tasks.
- Lots of payment proof – Many contractor testimonials validate getting paid.
- Relevant job roles – Align staffing needs with business operations.
Importantly, Appen does not require upfront payments, bogus training fees or recruitment of additional members. There are no evident signs of a pyramid scheme or scam-like structure.
Negative reviews focus on low pay and boring work, not scams or missing payments. In short, Appen provides a legitimate service compensating people for completing real data work. The opportunity has its drawbacks, but is certainly not a scam.
Conclusion
In summary, Appen has established itself as a legitimate player in the technology services industry. The evidence shows:
- Proven business model providing AI training data since 1996.
- Real clients including major tech companies.
- Over 1 million contractors worldwide.
- Publicly traded on the ASX stock exchange.
- Mostly positive contractor experiences getting paid for work performed.
Appen offers flexible contractor work completing microtasks like data annotation. Pay is on the low end and work volume fluctuates. However, it remains a viable income supplement option versus an outright scam.
There are reasonable criticisms about monotonous work and inconsistent hours. But overall, Appen has established itself as a large, legitimate company. It continues to provide income opportunities for millions of contractors worldwide.