OpenAI pays contractors $50+/hour to read full ChatGPT conversations, 404 Media reveals
thisguyknowsai · x · 2026-09-26
404 Media's "Project Lily" report reveals OpenAI pays hundreds of outside contractors over $50/hour to review real ChatGPT conversations — not just messages but whole chats, sometimes with a "user memories summary" that can hint at where users live.
Key points:
- Model training is on by default for Free, Plus, and Pro; opting out only applies to new chats
- Chats pass a privacy filter first, but OpenAI admitted it can miss personal details in shorter conversations
- Some users explicitly asked ChatGPT to keep secrets; OpenAI didn't directly answer where users are warned humans may read chats
- A class action was filed in San Francisco two days after the report
- Anthropic also confirmed it uses human review
The author's take: human review isn't evil, but 900 million people assume they're talking to a machine and the settings page doesn't say otherwise.
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