What is the difference between Appen and Scale AI?

Appen provides AI training data, data annotation and model evaluation to AI labs and other AI teams. Scale AI provides training data, RL environments, and model evaluations to AI labs, governments, and enterprises. Both sell labeling software, datasets, expert and human data, RL environments, evaluations and benchmarks and annotation. Only Scale AI sells simulation.

Which raised more money, Appen or Scale AI?

Appen: no disclosed round on record. Scale AI: $15.3B disclosed, valued at $29B (2025).

Do Appen and Scale AI buy data from companies?

Appen takes data from the companies that hold it, through a published programme. Scale AI takes data from the companies that hold it, through a published programme.

Updated 8 Nov 2026

Appen vs Scale AI, by the numbers.

By revenue, Scale AI is the larger: $870M (FY2024), against Appen's $249M (12 months to Jun 2026). Scale AI's figure is the older by 18 months; no later one is on record.

Both sell labeling software, datasets, expert and human data, RL environments, evaluations and benchmarks and annotation. Only Scale AI sells simulation. Every figure below is linked to the filing or article it comes from; what each sells is in its own words, from its own pages.

Hold data companies like these buy? AIData.Broker values it free and introduces it to every buyer that takes it, at no cost to you: the buyers pay us. Where it earns more, we run the sale ourselves, for a fee only out of a sale.

Value your dataHow a sale works

No data upload
About two minutes
No email needed

Side by side

Revenue over twelve months, the newest valuation, disclosed funding and what each says it does.

Appen and Scale AI compared on revenue, valuation, funding and what each sells
	Appen	Scale AI
	Appen	Scale AI
Place on the rankings	#11 of 78	#5 of 78
Ranked on	$249M Revenue, 12 months to Jun 2026	$870M Revenue, FY2024
Revenue, twelve months	$249M 12 months to Jun 2026 over time	$870M FY2024 over time
Newest valuation	Not on record	$29B Jun 2025
Disclosed funding	Not on record	$15.3B in 2 records
Sells	Labeling software, Datasets, Expert and human data, RL environments, Evaluations and benchmarks, Annotation	Labeling software, RL environments, Datasets, Expert and human data, Evaluations and benchmarks, Annotation, Simulation
Works on	Coding, Business work, Finance, Legal, Medical, Science, Robotics, Speech and audio, Images and video, Languages	Coding, Computer use, Business work, Robotics, Medical
Made from	Recorded from people and the real world, Made by experts and contractors, Licensed from its owners, Generated	Made by experts and contractors, Replicas of real software
Takes data from companies	Its own programme	Through our introductions
Headquarters	Kirkland, Washington, US and Sydney, New South Wales, Australia (dual headquarters)	San Francisco, California, US
Founded	1996	2016
In its own words	“We deliver the expert-validated data that trains frontier models, ensuring AI systems understand nuance, context, and complexity at scale.” Its page	“Scale delivers proven data, evaluations, and outcomes to AI labs, governments, and the Fortune 500.” Its page

The rule.: Each company is ranked on the first of these it has on record: its revenue over twelve months (a run rate or a year as published, or its last four quarters added up; an AI segment where the rest of its business is not AI data), then its newest valuation, then the money it disclosed raising. No company pays for a place. The full method and every change to it.
Twelve months.: A run rate or ARR is the company's own annualised figure; a year is the year it published. Gross revenue of a human data company includes what it pays its experts.
Pays companies for data.: "Through our introductions": it takes companies' data through AIData.Broker's introductions and pays us a referral fee when one goes ahead. That never moves its place: the order is the money on record. "Its own programme": a published programme for buying data. "Says it buys data": its own words, linked.
Why this pair.: People search for this comparison: Google suggests it, read on 8 Nov 2026. Neither company asked for or paid for this page.

Selling your company's data to Appen or Scale AI

What each says it pays a company for its data, what it wants and when it pays, in its own published terms.

What Appen and Scale AI publish about buying a company's data
	Appen	Scale AI
Takes data from companies	Its own programme	Through our introductions
What it says it pays	Not published	$10K to $1M Scale AI, data partnership page, 7 Nov 2026
What it wants	Operational documentation (procedures, wikis, QA), decision and escalation records (support desk, ITSM, CRM, project tracking, messaging) and systems of record (ERP, warehouse, contracts, HR, procurement).	Structured, de-identified records from data warehouses, chat, email, documents, work tools and business platforms.
When it pays	"Payment is on acceptance rather than submission."	Not published. A scoping call first; a partnership can begin with a very limited scope.

You need not choose one: AIData.Broker values a company's data free and introduces it to every buyer whose own rules take it. Value your data

On the same rankings

The lists both are ranked on, with each one's place.

Best data labeling platformsAppen #3, Scale AI #1 of 14
Robotics training data companiesAppen #4, Scale AI #1 of 31
Best data labeling companiesAppen #7, Scale AI #2 of 40
Medical AI training data companiesAppen #9, Scale AI #4 of 26
RL environment companiesAppen #9, Scale AI #5 of 36
Coding data companies for AIAppen #10, Scale AI #5 of 33
Best AI training data providersAppen #10, Scale AI #4 of 53
AI evaluation companiesAppen #10, Scale AI #5 of 60
Best AI data labs and human data companiesAppen #11, Scale AI #5 of 41

The latest money moves

The newest rounds, valuations and revenue figures of the two, each linked to its record.

27 Aug 2026Appen reported $249M revenue (12 months to Jun 2026)
12 Jun 2025Scale AI raised $14.3B at a $29B valuation
8 Jun 2025Scale AI reported $870M revenue (FY2024)
21 May 2024Scale AI raised $1B at a $13.8B valuation
12 Mar 2024Appen was acquired by Innodata

The questions people ask

Is Appen bigger than Scale AI?: By revenue, Scale AI is the larger: $870M (FY2024), against Appen's $249M (12 months to Jun 2026). Scale AI's figure is the older by 18 months; no later one is on record.
What is the difference between Appen and Scale AI?: Appen provides AI training data, data annotation and model evaluation to AI labs and other AI teams. Scale AI provides training data, RL environments, and model evaluations to AI labs, governments, and enterprises. Both sell labeling software, datasets, expert and human data, RL environments, evaluations and benchmarks and annotation. Only Scale AI sells simulation.
Which raised more money, Appen or Scale AI?: Appen: no disclosed round on record. Scale AI: $15.3B disclosed, valued at $29B (2025).
Do Appen and Scale AI buy data from companies?: Appen takes data from the companies that hold it, through a published programme. Scale AI takes data from the companies that hold it, through a published programme.

More comparisons

Each company against its whole field, and the other comparisons people search.

Every head to head

These companies buy and build the data AI is trained on. See what yours is worth to them.

Value your data Every company, ranked