AI Company Pays Actors $74 to Pretend AI Isn’t Taking Over Yet

Photo by Masjid Pogung Dalangan on Unsplash

KEY POINTS

•Handshake AI hired improv actors for $74 an hour to record themselves remotely reacting to prompts.
•The company, originally a social network for job seekers, launched an AI division about a year ago.
•Reddit users guessed videos might help build AI-generated comedic content, sparking debate about the future of human performers.

Handshake AI, a company that once just connected college grads to jobs but now moonlights as an AI impresario, is dishing out a princely $74 an hour for actors to perform improv scenes remotely. Yes, you read that right: improv actors with at least a bachelor's degree get paid more than many decent gigs just to chat on video, playing along with vague 'light prompts' for 'one of the leading AI companies'—real specific, Handshake. Apparently, this gig fits nicely between auditions and rehearsals as human spontaneity trains merciless, humor-craving AI overlords. Reddit detectives speculate these videos feed AI models making deepfake comedians, while some dream of a future where humans get gigs generating 'real, unpolished comedy,' despite investing hours training their robo-replacements. Uber’s AI training side-hustle aside, don’t forget: it’s all contractor work—benefits optional because hey, welcome to the future.