Sell Data to AI Companies: Questions to Ask Before You Sign
AITrainingDataBroker.com
Sell Data to AI Companies:
Questions to Ask
Before You Sign
DATA LICENSE
Ask first.
6 questions: use, term, exclusive, privacy, pay, problems
Jimmy Lin
Sell Data to AI Companies: Questions to Ask Before You Sign
A contract lands on your desk, with a pen beside it and a line waiting for your signature.
Many people think a contract that looks standard has standard answers, but the terms can differ a lot from one deal to the next.
This is the moment to pause and ask a few questions first.
That pause is short, and it matters more than it seems.
The video
Sell Data to AI Companies: Questions to Ask Before You Sign
Full script
A contract lands on your desk, with a pen beside it and a line waiting for your signature.
Many people think a contract that looks standard has standard answers, but the terms can differ a lot from one deal to the next.
This is the moment to pause and ask a few questions first.
That pause is short, and it matters more than it seems.
A data license often runs for 2 years or more.
That makes it the one document where a few missing answers can cost you years.
The 6 questions ahead take only a few minutes to ask.
This is general information, not legal advice.
First, what can the AI lab actually do with your data?
First, what can the AI lab do with your data?
It could train a model on it, or resell it, or show it to other companies.
Each of those is a different use, and the permitted uses should be written down.
In one AI data company's agreement, the lab could train and test models, and make new versions of the data.
So ask which uses are allowed, and which are not.
Second, how long does the license last, and does it renew?
Find the term first, because the other answers run on that clock.
Then ask what happens at the end of the term.
It may renew, it may stop, or the AI lab may keep using the models it already trained.
That same agreement had no end date, and the models trained on the data stayed as they were.
These points are agreed case by case, and an answer on a call does not count unless it is in the contract.
Third, is it exclusive?
An exclusive AI lab agreement means only that one AI lab may license your data, for a set term.
The price is often higher, though that is typical, not a promise.
In a shared deal, other AI labs may license the same data too.
An exclusive broker agreement is a different contract.
It is with a broker, not a lab, and it only decides who brings you offers.
So ask which one you are being asked to sign, and for how long.
Fourth, who removes the personal details, and who checks the result?
De-identified data has the names, phone numbers and account numbers taken out, so ask who does that work.
Then ask who checks it, and what happens if one detail is missed: who fixes it, and who pays.
This is agreed in each deal.
That same agreement made the lab remove or mask personal details before it shared the data for training.
Fifth, when and how are you paid, and what if the AI lab rejects the data?
Ask what starts the payment, how long the review window is, and what happens on a rejection.
A rejection might mean you fix the problem and send the data again.
It might also mean you are paid only in part, or not at all.
So get that answer before you sign, not after.
I covered the timing in an earlier video, How Long Until You Get Paid, so I will not repeat it.
This list will not fit every deal, because each AI lab writes its own contract.
Sixth, what if something goes wrong?
Ask who pays if the rights to the data turn out to be unclear, and what limit there is on what they pay.
Ask whether you can audit how the data is used, and whether the files are deleted when the deal ends.
EU privacy law, in GDPR Article 28 from April 2016, covers a company that handles personal data for another company.
The contract between them must allow audits and inspections, and delete or return the data when the service ends.
A data license is a different contract, but those are the same 2 questions.
Also ask what deletion covers.
In that same agreement, the files were deleted, but the trained models were kept.
Here is a checklist of questions to ask before you sign.
What can they do with your data?
How long does the license last, and does it renew?
Is it exclusive?
Who removes the personal details, and who checks?
When are you paid, and what if the data is rejected?
What if something goes wrong?
Before you sign, have your own lawyer read the final contract.
After a list like this, your next question may be, who can read this with me?
That is where I can help, so let me introduce myself.
I'm Jimmy. I have worked in data at Fortune 500 companies, as a data analyst, a data engineer and a software engineer, and I am trained in data science. I am also a Canadian military veteran, specialized in data analysis and reporting.
In a data deal, I come in as your broker and technical advisor.
As your broker, I help you create relationships with AI labs and bring back their offers, so you can compare the price and the terms before you decide.
I work through the terms with you, and you make the final call.
As your technical advisor, I guide your team through what to export, the format, the de-identification and compliance.
We move forward only after your team signs off.
I work on commission only, paid by the AI lab.
Already shopping your data around? Contact us anyway. We can still work through the terms with you and help you negotiate a better price.
If you are buying data for an AI lab, I find the right data and see it through to delivery, so you can focus on AI research.
So before you sign, get the answers to these 6 questions written into the contract.
More on data license contracts at AITrainingDataBroker.com.
Thank you for watching.
I will see you next time.
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