Latest news with #SteveMcKinney
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Surge AI is latest San Francisco startup accused of misclassifying its workers
Artificial intelligence training company Surge AI has been hit with a lawsuit alleging it has misclassified contractors hired to improve chat responses from AI software for some of the world's leading tech companies. The proposed class action lawsuit alleges that "data annotators" — hired by Surge AI to ensure that powerful AI systems run by Meta and OpenAI can properly generate text responses that are accurate and capable of mimicking human expressions — were "deliberately" classified as independent contractors, denying them benefits given to employees. In the lawsuit filed Monday, California-based plaintiff Dominique DonJuan Cavalier II, represented by public interest law firm Clarkson, alleged he and other data annotators were made to do unpaid training and were subject to near-impossible time limits for tasks that caused their pay to be docked. San Francisco-based Surge AI, also known as Surge Labs, and its subsidiaries "have reaped enormous profits by deliberately avoiding paying wages and benefits to those performing work that forms the backbone of Defendants' business," the lawsuit alleges. Surge AI did not respond to a request for comment. In recent years, AI data training companies have been accused of mistreating workers abroad in Kenya and elsewhere. But increasingly, as the AI industry balloons, workers in California and nationwide have begun to raise similar complaints. Similar lawsuits have been filed against Scale AI, a larger AI training company that has gathered a vast workforce of contractors to train AI tools for companies, including Open AI and Google, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense. Surge AI has raised some 25 million, according to Crunchbase. The much larger Scale AI is seeking a valuation as high as $25 billion in a potential tender offer, Reuters reported. Plaintiff Steve McKinney, a resident of Newbury Park who was hired by Scale AI's subsidiary Outlier AI as a 'tasker," sued the company in December alleging he was promised a pay rate of $25 per hour but was ultimately paid only a fraction of that amount. Workers who questioned the company's payment practices in internal messaging app Slack were abruptly removed from the app, according to the suit, which was also brought by law firm Clarkson, headquartered in Malibu. Scale AI contractors in January hit the company with a second lawsuit, alleging contractors were made to sift through graphic "depraved images" and emotionally distressing content, and dealt with post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological issues as a result. Scale AI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A company spokesperson told TechCrunch in March that its work was misunderstood by regulators and others and that the company offers "flexible work opportunities" to Americans. Sign up for our Wide Shot newsletter to get the latest entertainment business news, analysis and insights. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
21-05-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Surge AI is latest San Francisco startup accused of misclassifying data labeling workers
Artificial intelligence training company Surge AI has been hit with a lawsuit alleging it has misclassified contractors hired to improve chat responses from AI software for some of the world's leading tech companies. The proposed class action lawsuit alleges that 'data annotators' — hired by Surge AI to ensure that powerful AI systems run by Meta and OpenAI can properly generate text responses that are accurate and capable of mimicking human expressions — were 'deliberately' classified as independent contractors, denying them benefits given to employees. In the lawsuit filed Monday, California-based plaintiff Dominique DonJuan Cavalier II, who worked as a data annotator, alleged workers were made to do unpaid training and were subject to near-impossible time limits for tasks that caused their pay to be docked. San Francisco-based Surge AI, also known as Surge Labs, Inc and its subsidiaries, 'have reaped enormous profits by deliberately avoiding paying wages and benefits to those performing work that forms the backbone of Defendants' business,' the lawsuit alleges. Surge AI did not respond to a request for comment. In recent years, AI data training companies have been accused of mistreating workers abroad in Kenya and elsewhere. But increasingly, as the AI industry balloons, workers in California and nationwide have begun to raise similar complaints. Similar lawsuits have been filed against Scale AI, a larger AI training company that has gathered a vast workforce of contractors to train AI tools for companies, including Open AI and Google, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense. Surge AI has raised some 25 million, according to Crunchbase. The much larger Scale AI is seeking a valuation as high as $25 billion in a potential tender offer, Reuters reported. Plaintiff Steve McKinney, a resident of Newbury Park, California, who was hired by Scale AI's subsidiary Outlier AI as a 'tasker,' sued the company in December alleging he was promised a pay rate of $25 per hour but was ultimately paid only a fraction of that amount. Workers who questioned the company's payment practices in internal messaging app Slack were abruptly removed from the app, according to the suit. Scale AI contractors in January hit the company with a second lawsuit, alleging contractors were made to sift through graphic 'depraved images' and emotionally distressing content, and dealt with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and other psychological issues as a result. Scale AI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A company spokesperson told TechCrunch in March that its work was misunderstood by regulators and others and the company offers 'flexible work opportunities' to Americans.
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New jobs coming to Smyth Co. as transformer manufacturer expands
SMYTH COUNTY, Va. (WJHL) — A company that makes electrical grid infrastructure is adding a warehouse in Smyth County, Virginia and expanding its facility in Bland County – a move that will create 120 new jobs. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin's office announced in a news release Friday that Hitachi Energy is expanding operations to meet increased demand. Hitachi Energy is growing its transformer production capacity in the Commonwealth by investing $22.5 million. Open house held as Tri-Cities Airport Master Plan nears completion The investment will expand the company's facility in Bland and add a warehouse in Atkins. The Atkins site 'will handle core cutting and warehousing work,' according to the release. 'Hitachi Energy's investment in the new Atkins facility and the transformative modernization of the Bland plant is a powerful endorsement of Virginia's manufacturing capabilities. This world-class company's investment in Southwest Virginia is not only expanding domestic transformer production, but also creating high-quality, skilled jobs and driving innovation in energy infrastructure. Hitachi Energy is a trusted, long-term partner with Virginia, and together we are growing a hub of energy innovation and infrastructure advancement.' Governor Glenn Youngkin Steve McKinney, Hitachi Energy's senior vice president and head of transformers in North America, said Virginia has been pivotal in the company's success for decades. 'The new facility in Atkins, alongside the upgrades at our existing site in Bland, represents a major milestone in our commitment to building resilient energy infrastructure in the U.S.,' McKinney said. About 450 people are employed at the current Bland facility, which has been in operation since 1972. The Bland location manufactures transformers used across the United States. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
