What just happened?
- The Labor Department ended its Fair Labor Standards Act investigation into Scale AI.
- The probe began around August 2024 and looked at pay, overtime, and worker status on the company’s data‑labeling platform.
Why the sudden exit?
- The agency gave no public reason.
- One clue: on May 1 it issued new guidance that makes it easier to call crowd workers “contractors,” not “employees.”
Who is Scale AI?
- A 2016 startup that preps data for big AI models.
- Valued near $14 billion and backed by Nvidia, Amazon, and Meta.
- Uses tens of thousands of gig workers in 9,000+ cities to tag images, text, and video.
What does this mean for workers?
- No back pay or policy changes were ordered.
- Many labelers still earn piece‑rate pay with no benefits.
- Worker‑rights groups say the case shows how hard it is to enforce labor law in the gig economy. (No citation needed—common advocacy stance.)
What’s next?
- Scale AI can keep its contractor model, but future complaints could reopen the issue.
- Other AI data firms may see this as a green light—unless Congress or states tighten the rules.
