From TIME · Billy Perrigo · · 1m 30s
AI data firm Sama shuts down amid lawsuits
The contractor that moderated content for Meta and labeled data for OpenAI is liquidating after facing class-action litigation in Kenya and the US.
In brief
The contractor that moderated content for Meta and labeled data for OpenAI is liquidating after facing class-action litigation in Kenya and the US. Sama, which performed content moderation for Meta and data labeling for OpenAI, is liquidating its assets after facing multiple class-action lawsuits over worker treatment…
Sama winds down operations
The AI data annotation firm Sama is liquidating its assets, according to a letter to creditors dated November six reviewed by TIME.
Lawsuits and competition cited
The letter blames declining revenues from increased competition and class-action litigation that would have required significant resources and years to defend successfully.
“declining revenues due to increased competition that was compounded by recent class action litigation that would have required significant resources and years to defend successfully”
Severe financial distress
An unaudited balance sheet shows Sama had approximately one million dollars in assets and seventeen million dollars in liabilities as of October.
Work for Meta and OpenAI
Sama performed content moderation for Meta and data labeling for OpenAI. Employees said the work exposed them to traumatic content without adequate safeguards.
Multiple legal battles
Sama and Meta face lawsuits in Kenya over allegations of worker exploitation, illegal termination, and suppression of unionization. Separate US class-action suits involve privacy violations from smart glasses work.
Assets transferred for liquidation
On October twenty-three, Samasource Impact Sourcing transferred its assets to newly formed Sama ABC to oversee their sale and distribute proceeds to creditors. A bank holds priority claim to substantially all assets.
At a glance
Sama, which performed content moderation for Meta and data labeling for OpenAI, is liquidating its assets after facing multiple class-action lawsuits over worker treatment and privacy violations.
