Need another indicator that the generative artificial intelligence industry is real and making progress? Look at the booming business of data labeling and annotation, which is an essential step in training the models that power AI products ranging from what’s currently vogue in the industry—chatbots!— to ongoing projects such as self-driving vehicles and tools that diagnose diseases. The data labeling service began generating revenue last year, with the business getting “very big, very quickly,” he said. Jäätma estimates that 80% of the business comes from companies essentially looking to make avatars less cartoonish.