A new job is emerging in China: "robot trainers" who record human movements as data to teach machines how to work.
Freelance robot trainers are multiplying across the country, strapping on motion-capture gear and repeating household chores to log their movements, Hong Kong's South China Morning Post reported on the 14th.
Workers repeat everyday motions such as picking up cups, opening bottle caps, washing dishes and folding clothes. The data is then processed and used to train robots destined for kitchens, factories and supermarkets. Job postings are spreading quickly on Chinese social media and recruitment platforms, with monthly pay ranging from 4,000 to 6,000 yuan (about 1.2 million won, or $840).
Washing Dishes 200 Times, Hundreds of Motions a Day
Liu Yun, a man in his 40s who lost his job in the auto industry, chose this work over returning to his old field. At a Beijing workspace, wearing a sensor bracelet on his wrist and chips on his fingers, he follows on-screen instructions to move cups and wipe surfaces hundreds of times a day.
A large screen in the workspace displayed a real-time ranking of workers by productivity and accuracy. The daily quota was 160 tasks, but top performers handled more than 260.
Sun, a 22-year-old university student, started the job while looking for a vacation internship. Day shifts paid 120 yuan (about 24,000 won) and night shifts 135 yuan (about 26,700 won), but the fatigue from repetitive motions outweighed the income. Many quit within weeks.
Others are satisfied with the flexible arrangement. Guo Hongjuan, from Jiangsu province, collects data at home for six hours a day — organizing books, wiping the dining table — earning 4,000 yuan a month while caring for her child in between.
The work of collecting human movements is now spreading to outdoor workers such as cleaners and sanitation staff. In August, Shenzhen-based Paixian AI handed out data-collection equipment to street cleaners.
Robots You Train Today May Take Your Job Tomorrow
Paradoxically, robots as of 2026 still stumble over even the simplest tasks on site, and some point out that basic production jobs are instead facing labor shortages. Even so, experts warn the picture will change as the pace of technological advance quickens.
According to an analysis by the Korea Employment Information Service, 90.1% of elementary occupations and 86.1% of skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery jobs are classified as being at high risk of replacement by AI and robots. Experts stress that the ability to adapt to AI is the key factor in preventing job losses. Learning how to work alongside AI, they say, will become as important as traditional professional skills.
The concern that those teaching robots today could lose their jobs to those same robots tomorrow is becoming reality.