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Got an ad saying your company data is worth up to $2M? Here is what's going on

That ad is most likely from micro1, an AI data company, or one of at least 18 advertisers now running similar ads. "Up to $2M" is the top of a range, not a typical payout. The click usually opens a short form inside Facebook, and a sales call follows if your company fits.1,2,3,4

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

Who is running these ads

The best-known version is micro1's. One ad says "Your previous company's data could be worth up to $2M", aimed at US companies that had 25 or more staff at their peak. Another says "Companies are earning $100K-$2M+ by licensing anonymized operational data". Both are micro1's own wording.1,3

micro1 is not alone. We counted at least 18 advertisers running company data ads on Facebook and Instagram, almost all of them started between September and mid-October 2026. Most are brokers, meaning middlemen who introduce you to a buyer and get paid when a deal closes. Few are AI labs.2

Several use the same $2M number. Supersoniq says "Your old binders: up to $2M". Data Value Check asks "Could Your Business Data Be Worth $2M?" and says it is an affiliate marketer, not micro1. Your Data Value and VMS both quote $200K to $2M.5,6,7,8,9

Why the ads appeared all at once

Money arrived. In October 2026 micro1 said it would spend $1B over 12 months buying company data, financed by Citi and Hercules Capital. Before that, Google, Mercor and micro1 had all bid for Spirit Airlines' internal emails and messages in its bankruptcy.10,11,12,13

And middlemen get paid well for finding sellers. micro1's referral page offers $50,000 per company introduced on deals up to $700,000. When one introduction can pay that much, a lot of people start buying ads.14

What "up to $2M" really means

It means the ceiling. Supersoniq says it plainly: $2M is the most it would pay one company, not a normal amount. micro1's own tiers start at $100K for a qualified deal, and its $2M+ tier is only for highly unique data.15,16

The payouts advertisers do show are lower, and none name the company. Jottings says an owner licensed data for $173,163. A Goldmined ad says a distribution company owner made $290K. Pewter says a 60-person accounting firm was paid $350,000. These are their own claims, and we could not check any of them.17,18,19

For a company that has already closed, the numbers are smaller again. SimpleClosure, which sells data for shut-down startups, typically gets $10K-$100K a deal.20

What happens after you click

Most of these ads open an Instant Form, a lead form built into Facebook. You never visit the company's website. micro1's closed-company form has five questions. Its full estimator asks about staff count, years of data, number of business entities, how much is in English, where you are based, and whether the data is regulated.4,1,21

Read the small print on the form. Data Value Check's form says that by sending it, you agree to calls and texts, including by autodialer, from a marketing firm, micro1 and partners.22

Pros and cons

Pros

  • The demand behind the ads is real: micro1 has committed $1B over 12 months to company data.10
  • Many advertisers say there is no upfront fee, and get paid only when you do.23,8
  • A five-question form costs you a few minutes to learn whether your old files have any value.1

Cons

  • "Up to $2M" is a ceiling. Advertisers' own unnamed examples sit between $173,163 and $350,000.15,17,19
  • Lead forms hand your phone number to a sales team before you have read a website.4,22
  • Some advertisers give no company name, address or terms at all.24
  • Middlemen can take a cut: Jottings says its success fees are typically 20-30% of the payout.25

What it means for a business like yours

Check the size line first. micro1 asks for 30+ staff, or 25+ at the peak for a closed company. Supersoniq names 50+ staff and 5+ years. Nyne names 20+ full-time staff and 3+ years. A 12-person shop sees the same ad as a 200-person firm, but most of these buyers will not take it.26,1,27,28

If you already clicked, expect a sales call, and reread what the form said about calls and texts. On that call, ask four things: who the buyer is, whether the person calling is paid a fee, what records they want, and what the offer would be before any file leaves your office. A written offer first is the norm Supersoniq and Nyne both advertise.27,29

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 2026.10,2 Our view, not a promise: the money will not be around forever, because prices tend to come down as more businesses sell.10,30 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

  • micro1 runs ads with that wording, aimed at US companies that had 25 or more staff at their peak. Other advertisers, including Supersoniq and Data Value Check, use $2M figures too.1,5,6

  • $2M is a ceiling, not a typical payout. micro1's tiers start at over $100K, and the unnamed payouts advertisers show range from $173,163 to $350,000.16,17,19

  • Most company data ads use a Meta Instant Form, a lead form inside Facebook, so the advertiser gets your details before you leave the app.4

  • We counted at least 18 advertisers on Meta, almost all launched between September and mid-October 2026. Most are brokers rather than AI labs.2

  • Not all $2M ads come from micro1. Data Value Check says it is an affiliate marketer and not micro1, and Supersoniq, Your Data Value and VMS run their own ads with $2M figures.7,5,8,9

  • For micro1's closed-company ads, yes if it had 25 or more employees at its peak. Wound-down startups typically get $10K-$100K through SimpleClosure.1,20

  • Several advertisers say no upfront fee. Some middlemen take a success fee from the payout instead: Jottings says typically 20-30%.23,25

  • 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

  • Who owns this data: the company, an estate, or someone else?
  • Do customer, supplier or platform contracts, NDAs or API terms restrict this?

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.Meta Ad Library, micro1, published 9 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  2. 2.Meta Ad Library (our review). Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  3. 3.Meta Ad Library, micro1, published 4 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  4. 4.Meta Ad Library (our review). Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  5. 5.Meta Ad Library, Supersoniq, published 14 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  6. 6.Meta Ad Library, Data Value Check page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  7. 7.Data Value Check website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  8. 8.Meta Ad Library, Your Data Value, published 13 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  9. 9.Meta Ad Library, VMS (vmediasolutions.com), published 14 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  10. 10.The Next Web, published 9 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  11. 11.micro1 blog, published 9 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  12. 12.Bloomberg Law, published 17 Aug 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  13. 13.AI Weekly. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  14. 14.micro1 company referral page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  15. 15.Supersoniq website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  16. 16.micro1 data partnerships page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  17. 17.Meta Ad Library, Jottings AI. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  18. 18.Meta Ad Library, Goldmined.ai. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  19. 19.Pewter website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  20. 20.Forbes, published 16 Apr 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  21. 21.micro1 data payout estimator. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  22. 22.Data Value Check website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  23. 23.Meta Ad Library, Jottings AI. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  24. 24.Supersoniq website. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.
  25. 25.Jottings how we get paid page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  26. 26.micro1 company referral page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  27. 27.Meta Ad Library, Supersoniq, published 14 Oct 2026. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  28. 28.Meta Ad Library, Nyne.ai page. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  29. 29.Meta Ad Library, Nyne.ai. Accessed 14 Oct 2026. Company's own claim.
  30. 30.TechCrunch, published 16 Sep 2025. Accessed 14 Oct 2026.