We had an AI startup photograph every corner of our apartment.
This is a privacy nightmare. I certainly hid all my personal items properly before they arrived. But as a 23-year-old living in New York on a journalist’s budget, I’m not exactly splurging on house cleaners.
These were free as long as you agreed to the use of your camera.
The cleaners came from Shift, a startup that provides free housekeeping throughout New York. The price is a video recording, which will later be used to train the robot. (According to Shift’s website, Shift anonymizes “names, faces, and other personal information.”) This is part of a larger trend in which startups are paying for videos of robots doing chores like folding laundry to train them.
When Shift premiered in May, I immediately booked a spot. When the cleaners arrived two weeks later, I was nervous. Who were the strangers in my shoebox apartment? I got even more nervous when I got an email from another staff member, namely the chef, 10 minutes before the appointed time. — will be participating.
But in the end, I relaxed. After all, it was free.
The cleaners on shift had cameras attached to their baseball caps and dangling wires. Henri Chandonnet/Business Insider
The vacuum cleaner came first
When the Shift cleaners arrived at my apartment, I hesitated. They were in their 20s, wearing baggy white polo shirts and baseball caps attached to cameras.
The camera was hanging from the brim of his hat. Although they weren’t walking around with large video cameras, the wires hanging from the cameras were still very visible.
The cleaners mostly used a mix of their supplies and mine. It took about 90 minutes of the two hour slot. I was working while they were cleaning, which I was grateful for because they rarely disturbed me.
A shift cleaner vacuumed all over my apartment. Henri Chandonnet/Business Insider
I wasn’t very impressed with the cleaning. (When my roommate got home, he asked, “Have they come?”) Still, the service was free, and I liked not having to vacuum myself.
I was amazed by Shift’s 3 course meal.
About 10 minutes after the cleaning crew arrived, I heard a knock on the door. Chef James came.
James also wore the same uniform. He was wearing a white polo shirt, a baseball cap, and a wire around his neck. He stood in my kitchen and asked if I had any allergies or dietary preferences.
Chef James brought his own ingredients but used my kitchen equipment. Henri Chandonnet/Business Insider
I had no idea what James was cooking. (I didn’t even know there was chef service on shift!) The work lunch turned out to be a 3 course meal. James brought his own ingredients and only used my pots, knives, and plates.
My favorite was the main dish, which came with seared tuna with cilantro salt, Meyer lemon, artichokes, snap peas, and asparagus. My least favorite appetizer is the cured salmon belly, which has an overwhelming mustard oil flavor. Dessert was a light cake with whipped cream and strawberries, which I saved for later.
Chef service was the best of the shift. I don’t have anything sensitive in my kitchen so I didn’t have to worry about him photographing my passport or anything. Who doesn’t love free food?
Chef James’s main dish was my favorite. Henri Chandonnet/Business Insider
my last point
After about 30 minutes of cleaning, I got used to the wires and baseball caps lying around my apartment.
I’m curious if these free robot training services are sustainable. The cost of my session was likely high for Shift, including three employees, cleaning supplies, and food. I can’t believe a video of my apartment is worth that much.
The demand is certainly there. Slots at Shift filled up quickly, and when I checked back a week later, they were booked as well. I understand why.
After they left, I enjoyed my semi-cleaned apartment and the leftovers. And I prayed I didn’t have any IDs or credit cards with me that would be accidentally captured by AI machines trying to learn how to cook and clean like humans.