AI data buyer referral fees compared: who pays to introduce you
The AI data buyer that signs with your company pays the referral fee, and the published terms run from nothing at Troveo to up to $100,000 at Mercor and 7.5% of deal value above $700,000 at micro1. Your company pays nothing, and nothing is deducted from your contract.
By Hoyt Gong, Topology Partners. Facts checked . Topology Partners is an independent referral intermediary and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any buyer named on this page.
AI data buyer referral fees, as each buyer publishes them
Five AI data buyers publish a referral fee for introducing a company, and one marketplace pays none. The terms below are as published by each buyer, read 2026-10-24, and re-checked on each buyer's live page on 2026-10-25.
| Buyer | Referral fee to the introducer | When the buyer pays it | Who gets credit |
|---|---|---|---|
| micro1 | $50,000 for deals up to $700,000, or 7.5% of deal value above that; $75,000 for defunct companies on deals up to $1M | By wire, after micro1 has received and approved the data | Only a company that registers through the referral link before any other contact with micro1 |
| Mercor | 5% of the signed deal, up to $100,000; individual listings set their own caps, currently $25,000 to $92,500 | After the company's first data delivery | "The first valid referral for a company counts" |
| Scale AI | Up to $50,000 | Only if Scale signs a partnership with the company | The first introducer only; one referral per deal |
| Handshake AI | $10,000 | Once the company's data transfer is completed and accepted | The first to introduce the company |
| Turing (Project Lazarus) | Up to $10,000 | When a referral "becomes a deal"; Turing does not define that | Not published |
| Troveo | No referral program; pays nothing | Not applicable | Not applicable |
No buyer on this list pays for the introduction alone. Each fee depends on a deal, and most depend on the data moving. Check these terms on each buyer's page before you rely on them, since buyers change them.
Two buyers add detail on their own pages, read 2026-10-25. Mercor says the full amount applies to companies with 30+ employees, and that listing bonuses are locked in when the referral is made. Handshake AI says processing its $10,000 payment "can take up to 30 days" after the transfer is accepted.
What a referral costs your company
A referral through a buyer's program costs your company nothing, and nothing is deducted from your contract. The buyer pays the referral fee separately, from its own budget.
Topology Partners offers no fee sharing with your company or its owners. micro1's referral terms, last updated Oct 14, 2026, bar a referrer from sharing any portion of a payout with a company. The ban also covers "their employees, owners, or representatives." Topology Partners applies the same rule with every buyer.
Written fee disclosure before any introduction
Before any introduction, I tell you in writing which buyers fit your company and what each one pays Topology Partners. You reply with your OK, and nothing goes to any buyer before that reply.
- You see each fee. The written OK names every buyer and its referral fee, including $0 from Troveo.
- You can strike any buyer. That includes the buyers that pay me most.
- You set the exclusions. Name customers, competitors, systems or uses to keep out, and each buyer hears them.
The written OK is a short email. It lists each buyer, its published referral fee, when that buyer pays it and any buyer you chose to strike. If a buyer changes its terms before your introduction, I send you the new figure first.
Keep the written OK on file. It is your record of who was introduced, when and on what terms.
Why referral fee differences could bias an intermediary
Referral fees differ widely between buyers, which gives any intermediary paid by buyers a reason to steer you. Handshake AI pays $10,000, while Mercor pays up to $100,000 and micro1 pays $50,000 or more.
An introducer paid more by one buyer could send you only to that buyer, or present its offer first. You would see one number and never know what the others would have offered.
Topology Partners handles that in four ways.
- I introduce you to every approved buyer that fits, on the same day, not only the one that pays most.
- Offers come to you directly from each buyer, not through me.
- When you share them, I compare offers on price, permitted uses, exclusivity and payment timing. The referral fee is not one of the columns.
- You sign directly with the buyer you pick, or with none.
No buyer pays Topology Partners to be listed or ranked on this site. Ask any intermediary for the same written list before you agree to anything.
How buyer referral fees compare with other ways to meet AI data buyers
A buyer-paid referral is one of four ways a company reaches AI data buyers, and each puts the cost in a different place.
| Model | Who pays the middle party | What you see | What to ask |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buyer referral program (this model) | The buyer, from its own budget, after you sign | Each buyer's own offer, and each referral fee in writing first | What does each buyer pay you, and when? |
| Marketplace revenue share | Comes out of what buyers pay for your records | The buyers the marketplace brings to your records | What share does the marketplace keep, and for how long? |
| Success fee charged to your company | Your company, often a percentage of the deal | The buyers the advisor brings you | What percentage, and is it charged if you decline every offer? |
| A buyer's own direct application | No middle party | That one buyer's number | Which other buyers should you ask before signing? |
Troveo is a marketplace. It says it brings your data to buyers, and that "every new product is a new sale that you share in." Troveo runs no referral program, so it pays Topology Partners nothing.
A direct application costs no fee, and you can make one at any time. If you apply to micro1 or Scale AI yourself first, a later referral to that buyer will not count. Tell me, and I leave that buyer off your list. Whichever model you use, ask who pays whom before the first introduction.
Questions owners ask
Who pays the referral fee when I license data to an AI buyer?
The buyer that signs with your company pays it, from its own budget. Your company pays nothing, and the fee is not deducted from what the buyer pays you.
Which AI data buyer pays the highest referral fee?
On published terms read 2026-10-24, Mercor pays 5% of the signed deal up to $100,000, and micro1 pays $50,000 on deals up to $700,000 or 7.5% of deal value above that. Scale AI pays up to $50,000, Handshake AI $10,000 and Turing up to $10,000. Troveo has no referral program.
When does a buyer pay the referral fee?
Each buyer sets its own trigger. micro1 pays after it has received and approved the data, Mercor after the first data delivery, Scale AI only if it signs, and Handshake AI once the data transfer is completed and accepted. Turing pays when a referral becomes a deal and does not define that.
Does a bigger referral fee mean a better offer for my company?
No. The referral fee is paid to the introducer and says nothing about the price, permitted uses or payment timing in your offer. Compare offers on those terms and ignore what each buyer pays the intermediary.
Can I see what each buyer pays you before I agree?
Yes. Before any introduction I send you in writing the list of buyers that fit and what each one pays Topology Partners. You can strike any buyer, including the ones that pay most.
Will you share the referral fee with my company?
No. Topology Partners offers no fee sharing to a company or its owners. micro1's referral terms ban sharing any part of a payout with a referred company's employees, owners or representatives.
How Topology Partners is paid
Topology Partners is paid by buyers, never by you. When you sign with a buyer that runs a referral program, that buyer pays us a referral fee. Here is what each buyer publishes, as we read it on October 24, 2026:
- micro1: $50,000 for deals up to $700,000, or 7.5% of deal value above that; $75,000 for a company that has shut down, on deals up to $1M. micro1 pays by wire after it has received and approved the data.
- Mercor: 5% of the signed deal, up to $100,000. Each Mercor listing sets its own cap, currently $25,000 to $92,500. Paid after your first data delivery.
- Scale AI: up to $50,000, paid only if Scale signs a partnership with you.
- Handshake AI: $10,000, paid once your data transfer is completed and accepted.
- Turing (Project Lazarus): up to $10,000 when a referral “becomes a deal”. Turing doesn't define what that means.
- Troveo: a marketplace with no referral program. It pays us nothing.
Some buyers pay us more than others. Here is what that means for you:
- 01You pay nothing. No fee to us, at any point, whether or not you sign.
- 02Nothing comes out of your contract. The buyer pays our fee separately; it is never deducted from what you're paid.
- 03You see our fee first. Before any introduction, we tell you in writing what each buyer pays us.
- 04You can strike any buyer. Including the ones that pay us most. Offers come straight to you, and the final choice, including “none”, is yours.
No buyer pays us to be listed or ranked on this site.
See which buyers fit your company
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Sources
- micro1, Company referral page (referral FAQ), read 2026-10-25
- micro1, Referral program terms (last updated Oct 14, 2026), read 2026-10-25
- Mercor, Refer a company page and listings, read 2026-10-25
- Mercor, Data page, read 2026-10-25
- Scale AI, Data partnership page (referral FAQ), read 2026-10-25
- Handshake AI, Referral page, read 2026-10-25
- Handshake AI, Data partnerships FAQ, read 2026-10-25
- Turing, Project Lazarus page, read 2026-10-25
- Troveo, Business data page, read 2026-10-25