Scale AI vs Appen
Appen has labeled data since 1996 and runs a crowd of more than a million online workers; Scale AI, founded in 2016, pairs its own software with online workers and sells to AI labs and governments.
Choose Scale AI when
- You need satellite or map images labeled: Appen does not list them.
- Software should label first and people review after: Scale AI describes several levels of review on top of machine labels.
- You are a government buyer: Scale AI sells to governments and runs its own model on a classified network, its pages say.
Choose Appen when
- Your work is speech or text in many languages: Appen lists more than 100 languages.
- Your files include audio or medical data: Scale AI does not list either.
- You need ISO 27001 or HIPAA named on the vendor's own pages: Appen names both, next to SOC 2 Type II and GDPR.
Scale AI vs Appen: the facts side by side
| Fact |  Scale AI |  Appen |
|---|---|---|
| Based in | San Francisco, California | Sydney, Australia and Kirkland, Washington |
| Founded | 2016 | 1996 |
| How it works | Its own software paired with online workers who join through its job websites | Secure offices for private data, plus a crowd of more than 1 million online workers |
| Team | Crowd sites in Southeast Asia and Africa; 1,200 employees in 2025 | A secure facility in Cavite, Philippines; 14 offices across six countries |
| Kinds of files | Photos, Video, Text, 3D laser scans (LiDAR), Satellite and map images, Rating AI chatbot answers | Photos, Video, Text, Audio, 3D laser scans (LiDAR), Medical scans, Rating AI chatbot answers |
| Outside security audits | SOC 2 Type II | SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 |
| Laws it says it follows | None named | HIPAA, GDPR |
| How it prices | Price given for each job | Price given for each job |
| Free test | None published | None published |
| Minimum | None published | None published |
| Quality checks | Software labels the data first, then people review it, with more than one level and kind of review | Not described on its site |
| How to start | Book a 1:1 intro call from its pricing page; the price is set for each job | Contact form on its site |
Every fact comes from each company's own pages, last read 2026-10-16: docs.scale.com · en.wikipedia.org · scale.com · scale.com · en.wikipedia.org · appen.com · appen.com · appen.com.
The differences between Scale AI and Appen
- Scale AI: Meta agreed to pay $14.8 billion for a non-voting 49% share of Scale AI.
- Scale AI: Scale says it became the first AI company to run Donovan, its own language model, on a classified network.
- Appen: Appen says 80% of top LLM builders worldwide are its customers.
- Appen: Few vendors match its speech annotation across more than 100 languages and 500 locales.
Who Scale AI suits. For driving data, satellite imagery and model feedback, it suits large programs with security reviews that carry weight.
Who Appen suits. It's a good fit for multilingual speech and text work, plus big image or LiDAR jobs where many hands are needed fast.
Other companies to compare
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