There is plenty of content online talking about how people are making quick money with simple AI tasks on new platforms. It's tempting to explore these AI opportunities, especially if you are from a non-technical background. The idea of working from home on high-paying gigs in a trending field like AI is appealing and many freelancers and side hustlers are making optimum use of it.
You must have heard from friends or read online reviews about earning money with Outlier AI remote tasks. Outlier AI claims to offer AI task opportunities for both technical and non-technical people. Whether you're a student, freelancer, or full-time professional seeking a side hustle, AI tasks can provide decent online income if you have the right background and maintain a consistent workflow on Outlier AI, Clickworker, or similar platforms.
Let us explore how to maximize your earnings on Outlier AI and provide detailed case studies to illustrate who earns the most and how they do it.
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How to get started on Outlier AI
Sign up
If you have received an email from Outlier AI inviting you to apply to its platform, follow the instructions therein and sign up. You can create an account on Outlier AI directly also by visiting the platform’s ‘Opportunities’ page.
Complete the onboarding process
The onboarding process on Outlier AI is lengthy but it’s good in the way that it gives you a context of things you will be coming across while working on the AI gigs platform. Follow the onboarding process patiently, which includes tutorials on how to complete AI tasks.
Target small tasks in the beginning
Begin by taking simple data annotation jobs, content categorization, or image labeling tasks to get familiar with Outlier AI tasks. As mentioned in the Outlier AI review on Zimbola, most freelancers and gig workers fail on Outlier AI as they want a continuous flow of tasks and that too high-paying ones. The reality is that a major part of the tasks posted on the Outlier AI platform are low-paying ones. The flow of tasks is also not much when you start.
Build a reputation and be consistent
There are groups and team boards where you connect after the onboarding process. It’s a difficult job to stay put on the platform when there are very few tasks to work on but patience is the key. Combine performance with that on the tasks you get and once you start delivering quality work consistently, things might change. To increase your task availability on Outlier, read this comprehensive post.
Realistic earning potential on Outlier AI – The big dollar dreams
As mentioned in the Outlier AI review and Outlier alternatives articles, making a decent figure on the platform is an uphill task. It needs tremendous hard work and consistent efforts to make the cut. With time, your knowledge of AI tasks improves and that’s what gives you higher earnings on this and other AI gigs platforms.
Many users on Outlier AI report earning small but steady amounts based on the time and effort they put in. These Outlier AI case studies are inspired by common user experiences and scenarios. These case studies aim to illustrate the earning potential and challenges on Outlier AI and its alternatives including OneForma and Clickworker and its partner site UHRS.
Outlier AI Case study 1: Sarah, the student
Sarah, a college student pursuing a degree in computer science, signed up on Outlier AI during her summer break. With no prior experience in AI-related work, she initially spent 2-3 hours daily on basic data annotation tasks to get the hang of how these platforms work and how to manage the tasks they offer. These tasks involved labeling images or annotating text and typically paid per task rather than per hour. On average, Sarah earned $0.02 to $0.05 per image labeled.
Earnings breakdown:
Data Annotation (100 images daily): $0.03 per image x 100 images x 30 days = $90
Sentiment Analysis (200 short texts daily): $0.01 per text x 200 texts x 30 days = $60
Total monthly earnings: $150
Background:
Academics: Computer science student
Prior work: Part-time retail job
Challenges Sarah faced:
Accuracy issues: Sarah faced initial task rejections due to inexperience. She improved by reviewing detailed task guidelines. Her idea was to learn the basics of AI tasks so overall, it was beneficial for her.
Time commitment: Balancing schoolwork and Outlier AI tasks required strict time management.
Success tip: Sarah focused on improving accuracy to unlock higher-paying tasks over time.
Outlier AI Case study 2: James, the freelancer from Upwork and Fiverr
James, a freelancer with a background in journalism, joined Outlier AI to diversify his income streams. He worked in the reputation management and PR categories on popular freelancer platforms Fiverr and Upwork.
Making a slight switch to his work area to match up the work trends and increase his income, he took up AI gigs. On Outlier AI, he worked primarily on text categorization tasks that paid per categorization rather than per hour. Over time, he became proficient and increased his earnings.
Earnings breakdown:
Text categorization (300 texts daily): $0.03 per text x 300 texts x 30 days = $270
Image labeling (150 images daily): $0.04 per image x 150 images x 30 days = $180
Total monthly earnings: $450
Background:
Academics: Bachelor’s degree in journalism
Prior Work: Freelance content writer
Challenges James faced:
Monotony: Repetitive tasks led to fatigue. Taking breaks and varying task types helped him stay motivated. The willingness to continue as he wanted to excel in the AI field kept him going.
Platform competition: High-paying tasks were often taken quickly, so James logged in during peak hours to secure more jobs. The effectiveness of this method varied.
Success tip: James diversified his work across platforms like Appen and Lionbridge to supplement his earnings. He made earnings a secondary motive while making learning and growth in the AI field his primary motive. This was certainly smart thinking from James.
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Outlier AI case study 3: Dr. Emily, the Data Scientist
Dr. Emily, a data scientist with a PhD in computer science from a top university worked in big brands like Oracle, IBM, and SAP before taking up some side hustles to supplement her main income and gain experience in the AI field. Her specialized skills allowed her to take on more advanced tasks, such as AI model training and data cleaning. This paid higher rates per task but the downside was that tasks were not too many.
Earnings breakdown:
AI Model Training (30 tasks monthly): $15 per task x 30 tasks = $450
Data Cleaning (50 tasks monthly): $12 per task x 50 tasks = $600
Total monthly earnings: $1,050
Background:
Academics: PhD in computer science
Prior work: Full-time data scientist with Oracle, SAP, and IBM
Challenges Emily faced:
High expectations: Advanced tasks on Outlier AI had strict guidelines, leading to occasional rejections.
Time management: Despite working fewer hours, Emily needed to plan carefully to meet deadlines set on the Outlier AI job board.
Success tip: Emily used her academic background to qualify for higher-paying tasks and built a strong reputation for consistent quality.
Case Study 4: Jessica, the voiceover artist – Freelancer
Jessica is a voiceover artist with several years of experience as a freelancer with her profile on several freelancing platforms. With AI becoming popular and several fields using voiceovers turning to AI voiceovers, her income took a hit. She turned to Outlier AI to earn extra income. She worked on speech transcription and text categorization tasks. Although these tasks didn’t pay high rates, Jessica’s speed and accuracy allowed her to complete many tasks in a short time.
Earnings Breakdown:
Speech Transcription (1,000 words daily): $0.01 per word x 1,000 words x 20 days = $200
Text Categorization (300 texts daily): $0.02 per text x 300 texts x 20 days = $120
Total monthly earnings: $320
Background:
Academics: Graduate in arts
Prior work: Voiceover artist (continuing and trying to diversify to minimize the negative impact AI has had on her income)
Challenges Jessica faced:
Tight deadlines: Speech transcription tasks on Outlier AI had short turnaround times, requiring quick responses.
Platform navigation: Initially, she struggled to find tasks that matched his skills.
Success tip: Jessica improved his typing speed and transcription accuracy to increase task completion rates.
Popular tasks on Outlier AI
The most popular tasks on Outlier AI are listed here. These tasks are equally popular on Outlier AI alternative platforms as well.
Data annotation jobs: Annotate text, images, or videos to train AI models.
Image labeling: Categorize or tag images to help AI models understand visual data.
Text categorization: Organize text into relevant categories for AI training.
Sentiment analysis: Identify the sentiment in customer reviews or social media posts from various popular platforms.
Speech transcription: Convert audio recordings into text for AI voice-recognition models.
Tips for maximizing earnings on Outlier AI
A detailed review of how you can maximize your earning potential on Outlier AI with more specialized tasks in terms of quality and quantity is outlined in detail in this post. In a nutshell, this is what you can do to achieve your income goals on Outlier AI and its alternative platforms.
Focus on high-paying tasks: Prioritize tasks that offer higher payouts. It’s not as easy as it sounds but can be made easy by polishing your skills through the right courses and some experience on low-paying tasks on Outlier AI alternatives which offer basic tasks.
Be consistent: Consistency is the key to success in this upcoming field. Log in daily and do not get disappointed if you do not have tasks available. Complete tasks regularly to build a strong reputation.
Master task requirements: Minimize errors by closely following instructions. AI tasks are all about accuracy. The more accurate you will be in completing the tasks more the chances will have of getting more tasks from Outlier AI.
Explore Outlier AI alternatives: Platforms like Appen, Amazon Mechanical Turk, and Lionbridge offer similar AI tasks.
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Top Outlier AI alternatives
For a detailed analysis of Outlier AI alternatives, visit this blog on Zimbola. To cover it in short, here are the top options if Outlier AI does not work out for you.
Appen: Offers data annotation, image labeling, and speech transcription tasks.
Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk): A platform for micro-tasks, including text categorization.
Lionbridge: Provides AI-related gigs like data annotation and content moderation.
Clickworker: Focuses on data entry and AI training tasks.
Conclusion – Making money on Outlier - $1000 mark and beyond
Making $1,000 or more with AI tasks on Outlier AI is achievable with dedication and consistency. AI is an evolving field and most of the tasks available are for specialized fields but the good thing is that they are not limited to technical expertise. By focusing on quality work and exploring Outlier AI alternatives, you can turn your time and effort into a steady income.
Whether you’re a student, freelancer, or professional, Outlier AI offers opportunities to earn through AI gigs and tasks. Touching the $1000 mark is not easy but can be achieved if you train yourself well in AI-specific jobs and keep your expectations realistic in terms of quick money and higher task availability.
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