What the transcription economy tells us about the future of work.
WORD’S
WORTH
BY CLIVE THOMPSON
Gabriel is a professional transcriber, and for years he earned a middle-class living.
In the early 2000s he’d make up to $40 an hour transcribing corporate earnings
calls. He’d sit at his desk, “knock it out” for hours using custom keystrokes, and
watch the money roll in. “I sent my son to private schools and university on tran-
scribing,” he tells me. “It was a nice life.” Q But in the past decade, the bottom fell
out. As audio recordings went digital and broadband spread, clients could ship work
to India and the Philippines. Meanwhile, buzzy Silicon Valley startups emerged—like
Rev, a sort of Uber and 800-pound gorilla of the transcription world. It has moved
the industry toward an on-demand gig model. Since Rev charged customers a flat
rate of $1 per audio minute—less than half what transcription firms historically
charged—Gabriel’s pay sank even further. On top of it all, AI started nipping away
at the industry, with machines now able to rapidly transcribe some audio as well
as humans do. Q Today Gabriel clears $12 an hour—if he’s lucky. Some of his peers
make $6. Starbucks would be a step up. Q “The whole transcription life,” he
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MIND GRENADES
ILLUSTRATION / ELENA LACEY
