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AI Data Payout

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What we know about AI data payouts so far, by business type

What we know about AI data payouts so far is thin. Buyers quote $100K-$2M+ for operating companies and $10K-$100K for closed startups. By business type there are only one or two unnamed claims each, such as $350,000 for an accounting firm or $650K for a freight broker. Nobody has published enough for an honest index yet.1,2,3,4,5,6

By Lead analyst (to be named) · reviewed by Reviewing editor (to be named) · published 14 Oct 2026 · updated 18 Oct 2026

Why this is not an index yet

We planned an AI Data Payout Index: offer ranges by business type and buyer. We have not published one, because the evidence would not hold it up. Almost every figure comes from the company that wants your business, none names the business that was paid, and most business types have one data point.5,7

Some figures even repeat across companies. VMS and Cognor Labs show the same example cards, word for word: a $1.6M Midwest freight brokerage and a $1.4M Ohio CNC shop. We cannot count those as two data points, or treat either as checked.8,9

So below is what exists, sorted by business type, with who says it. Treat every line as a claim, not a benchmark.5

Payout claims by business type

Each line is the named company's own claim unless we say otherwise.5

  1. Accounting: a 60-person accounting firm paid $350,000 (Pewter), and an accounting group $280K (Pewter's market table, which repeats other publishers' claims).5,10
  2. Freight and logistics: a 100-person freight broker $650K (Pewter), and a third-party logistics company $500K (Pewter's market table). A Midwest freight brokerage at $1.6M appears on both VMS and Cognor Labs.6,11,9
  3. Engineering: a 70-person engineering firm $450K (Pewter).12
  4. Manufacturing: an Ohio CNC shop at $1.4M, shown on both VMS and Cognor Labs.8
  5. Distribution: an owner who made $290K licensing 10 years of orders, invoices and supplier emails (a Goldmined ad).13
  6. Marketing agencies: a $110,000 license for a global marketing agency (Polyshares).7
  7. Healthcare: one healthcare customer paid $943,000 (Shfa.ai).14
  8. Closed startups: typically $10K-$100K a deal, from over 150 deals reported for SimpleClosure; one crypto startup got about $25,000 for its code base (press reports).4,15

What buyers say by company size

Two companies publish size bands. DataFactor's own tiers: 20-50 employees, $50,000-$500,000; 50-200 employees, $500,000-$1,000,000; 200+ employees, $1,000,000+, all labelled directional. micro1's tiers: $100K-500K for a qualified partnership, $500K-2M for large datasets, $2M+ for highly unique data.16,17

The one deal with a public, checked price is not a small business at all. Spirit Airlines' internal archive drew a winning $10.0M auction bid from Google and a later $12.5M offer from micro1. The court has not approved a sale.18,19,20

What an honest index would need

Our reading: at least several deals per business type, each with the company's size, years of records, the systems included, whether the license was exclusive, and who confirmed the payment. Exclusivity alone changes the price: Troveo says exclusive licenses command a premium.21,22

Until then, the useful number is the one in your own written offer. Nyne says it compares offers on net contracted cash for the same data and rights, which is how we would line up two quotes.23

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Claims now exist for accounting, freight, engineering, manufacturing, distribution, agencies and healthcare.5,6,7,14
  • Two companies publish size bands you can place yourself in.16,17
  • Closed-startup prices rest on a real track record of over 150 deals.4

Cons

  • No payout to a named small business has been published.5
  • Most business types have a single data point.12,7
  • Some example deals are repeated word for word across different companies' sites.8
  • Claims come from firms that earn when you sign.24,25

What it means for a business like yours

If you run a 60-person accounting or freight firm, the claims above give you a rough sense of scale: hundreds of thousands, not millions. Use them to judge whether an offer is in the ballpark, not to set your price.5,6

Ask any firm that shows you an example deal two things: can you name the business, and can we speak to it? SimpleClosure tells founders to ask whether a buyer has completed and paid for a purchase before.26

Should your business get in now?

Businesses are already licensing their records: micro1 has committed $1B over 12 months to buying company data, and at least 18 firms started advertising for it between September and mid-October 2026.27,28 Our view, not a promise: the money will not be around forever, because prices tend to come down as more businesses sell.27,29 Take the quiz to see which firms fit your business.

Plus a free Seller's Guide when you finish.

Take the quizWho the brokerages are

We feature companies that pay us a referral fee. Our scores and reviews don't change for it. How we earn.

FAQ

Questions, answered with sources

  • Not yet. Too few payouts are published, none names the business paid, and most business types have one data point.5,7

  • Pewter says a 60-person accounting firm was paid $350,000, its own claim. Its market table also lists an accounting group at $280K, repeating another publisher's claim.5,10

  • Pewter says a 100-person freight broker got $650K. VMS and Cognor Labs both show the same $1.6M Midwest freight brokerage example.6,8

  • Typically $10K-$100K a deal through SimpleClosure, which has done over 150 data deals.4

  • Buyers say so. DataFactor's own tiers run from $50,000-$500,000 at 20-50 employees to $1,000,000+ at 200+.16

  • Most buyers keep sellers anonymous. micro1's terms bar naming a seller without written consent.30

  • Every business is different, so this one is best talked through with the buyer you're working with. Their team goes over it with you before anything is signed.

Before you sign

Questions to talk through with your buyer

Every business is different, so these are best talked through with the buyer you're working with. Their team goes over them with you before anything is signed.

Questions for this kind of business

  • How is the payment taxed?

Questions for any buyer

  • Is the license exclusive, and for how long?
  • Can you sublicense the data, and to whom?
  • Which AI labs will receive it, and will you tell us?
  • How long do you keep it, and how is it deleted?
  • What is your liability cap, and who indemnifies whom?
  • Will the contract ban re-identification of people in the data?
  • Who removes personal data, by what method, and do we approve it first?

How this page was made: drafted with AI help from the sources below, each checked; a buyer's claims about itself are its own. Updated October 2026. How we rank.

Sources (30)

  1. 1.micro1 company referral page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  2. 2.Ventra company data page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  3. 3.Cognor Labs partners page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  4. 4.Forbes, published 16 Apr 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  5. 5.Pewter website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  6. 6.Pewter. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  7. 7.Polyshares track record page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  8. 8.VMS manufacturing page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  9. 9.Cognor Labs website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  10. 10.Pewter. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  11. 11.Pewter. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  12. 12.Pewter. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  13. 13.Meta Ad Library, Goldmined.ai. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  14. 14.Shfa.ai website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  15. 15.MIT Technology Review, published 13 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  16. 16.DataFactor data partner page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  17. 17.micro1 data partnerships page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  18. 18.Chapter11Cases (Stretto) docket report on the Spirit data sale, published 13 Sep 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  19. 19.Chapter11Cases (Stretto) docket report on the Spirit data sale, published 13 Sep 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  20. 20.Skift, published 12 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  21. 21.Troveo, exclusive vs non-exclusive data licenses, published 10 Sep 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  22. 22.MIT Technology Review, published 13 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  23. 23.Nyne compare offers page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  24. 24.Pewter website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  25. 25.Cognor Labs website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  26. 26.SimpleClosure, How Real Are Those Million-Dollar Data Offers?, published 1 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  27. 27.The Next Web, published 9 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  28. 28.Meta Ad Library (our review). Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  29. 29.TechCrunch, published 16 Sep 2025. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  30. 30.micro1 Data License Master Terms, published 7 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.