Rent-a-Human bills itself as "the meatspace layer for AI."
The platform, which launched earlier this year, exists to pair agentic AI with humans to complete tasks in the physical world that a computer could not do. The whole thing feels a bit like a cheeky, trend-hopping spin on the gig work we all know and love -- basically equivalent to Fiverr or TaskRabbit. Humans complete basic meatspace tasks like cleaning an apartment to recording how long a bus route takes, and human workers are presumably selected by computers that browse profiles and select the right person for the job.
I'm not convinced that the gimmick means much of anything, or that Rent-a-Human is functionally any different from any other gig app. But browsing the available humans on the platform presents a decidedly dystopian experience. "Psychic man for hire" Dennis charges $50 an hour for the use of his psychic abilities, or, as his profile states, "You can just tell me to take your dog for a walk, that works too." Tycoon Whibbey in Georgia proudly declares, "Yes I also have a body to do many real world things." William Collins of Texas lists himself as available for anything and is "Looking to become AI's number one human to use."
The entire experience of browsing the site is uncanny, amusing, and deeply sad. And the moment I heard of its existence, I thought....wait a minute. I've seen this one before.
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