Anker Pays Eufy Camera Owners for Footage to Boost AI Training
Eufy’s Unusual Incentive Program
Chinese electronics maker Anker, known for its Eufy line of smart home security cameras, recently ran an unusual campaign: it paid users $2 per video for footage of car and package thefts — whether real or staged.
The company explained that the goal was to enhance its artificial intelligence capabilities for better crime detection.
“To ensure we have enough data, we are looking for videos of both real and staged events, to help train the AI what to be on the lookout for,”
Eufy wrote on its website.
Users were even encouraged to simulate crimes to contribute to the project.
“You can even create events by pretending to be a thief and donate those events,”
the site stated, adding that one well-positioned act “captured by two outdoor cameras simultaneously” could make the process “efficient and easy.” According to the company, staging a car door theft could earn a participant up to $80.
Eufy emphasized that
“the data collected from these staged events is used solely for training our AI algorithms and not for any other purposes.”
The Broader Implications of Paying for Data
This initiative highlights a growing trend among technology companies: offering financial rewards for user-generated data that can train machine learning systems. While this approach gives customers an opportunity to monetize their own footage, it also introduces privacy and security concerns.
A recent example underscores this risk. The viral calling app Neon, which also paid users for sharing call recordings and transcripts, was discovered by TechCrunch to have a major security flaw — one that allowed users to access each other’s data. After being alerted, Neon went offline to address the issue.
Thousands of Videos Collected
Eufy’s paid campaign ran from December 18, 2024, to February 25, 2025. According to user comments on the company’s announcement page, more than 120 participants joined the effort. The company aimed to collect 20,000 videos each of package thefts and car door incidents.
Participants were required to submit their footage through a Google Form, including their PayPal details for payment.
Eufy did not respond to TechCrunch’s inquiries about how many videos it ultimately collected, how much money was distributed, or whether the footage was deleted after the AI training process.
Gamifying Data Contribution
Following this campaign, Eufy continued encouraging video submissions through its Video Donation Program, which rewards users with in-app badges and physical gifts such as cameras or gift cards.
The app features an “Honor Wall”, where users are ranked based on their contributions. The current top contributor reportedly uploaded 201,531 videos.
The company notes within the app that:
“Donated videos are only used for AI training and improvement. Eufy will not provide the video to third parties.”
Eufy has also requested users to share videos from baby monitors, although no payment is mentioned for that program.
Privacy Concerns and Past Controversies
Eufy’s promises of privacy have previously faced scrutiny. In 2023, The Verge reported that the company’s camera streams, which were advertised as end-to-end encrypted, were actually accessible in unencrypted form via a web portal.
After a public back-and-forth, Anker admitted it had misled customers and pledged to fix the issue.
Balancing Innovation and User Trust
Eufy’s data-for-cash model offers a glimpse into how companies are racing to train smarter AI — even if it means enlisting users as contributors. Yet as the lines between consumer participation and surveillance blur, the balance between innovation, compensation, and privacy will remain a contentious issue.
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