Friday 12 / June / 2026
Chennai/Bengaluru: As the global race to build intelligent robots accelerates, thousands of Indians are finding employment in an unusual new profession — teaching machines how humans perform everyday tasks.
Armed with head-mounted cameras, smart glasses and motion sensors, workers across India are recording themselves carrying out routine activities such as cooking, folding clothes, ironing garments and arranging household items. The footage, known as “egocentric data,” is helping technology companies develop artificial intelligence systems capable of navigating and interacting with the physical world.
Many earns around ₹250 an hour filming herself performing household chores. Wearing a smartphone attached to her head, she records tasks ranging from slicing mangoes to preparing food, with the videos later uploaded to AI data company Objectways.
The recordings are being used to train advanced robotic systems that developers hope will eventually replicate human movements and perform domestic and industrial tasks. “Who else will pay you for doing housework?” said a worker .
The emerging field is creating fresh employment opportunities in India, particularly in technology hubs such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Companies collect thousands of hours of real-world footage from contributors working in homes, factories and specially designed studios that mimic everyday living environments.
Industry experts believe demand for such data will continue to grow as robotics companies seek to bridge the gap between digital intelligence and real-world functionality. Investment bank Morgan Stanley has projected that more than one billion humanoid robots could be in operation globally by 2050, primarily in industrial and commercial settings.
However, the development also raises questions about the future of employment. India’s policy think tank, NITI Aayog, has warned that while AI promises significant economic benefits, automation could disrupt traditional jobs if not managed carefully.
For now, though, the technology is generating new forms of work. From flower garland makers in Bengaluru to engineering graduates in AI studios, thousands are helping create the datasets that may power the next generation of robots.
Ironically, the very workers teaching machines how to perform human tasks may be shaping a future in which humans and robots work side by side rather than compete. As industry leaders envision, tomorrow’s workforce could see people supervising intelligent machines across continents — turning today's data collectors into pioneers of a new technological era.
