So I posted a job ....this happened.

[boris268]

So I'm pretty scared of what has become of Upwork.

I created a job and 5-6 proposals from the same guy.....
Another job I get 40 proposals in 10 min. Flooded with unqalified freshly created profiles. 

Another one with AI generated image of a fake person.

AI generated proposals letters. it's clear they just batch them out in huge quantaties like a factory.

Where is this going Upwork? How far will this go?

Am I going crazy or is this happening to anyone else?

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[9a7616f7]

Same this happened to me 2 days ago. Hope upwork should take action and fix it soon!

[8f7f5256]

Hello Boris 

I just got your post now and what I have to say is that It's not uncommon for a freelancer to submit multiple proposals for different jobs if they believe they are a good fit for those projects. Ands also if you come across AI-generated images or proposals that are clearly automated and not genuine, you should report them to Upwork.

But I don't still think all what you said is true and I also did not say is not true cause is really hard to believ all what you just said. That's just all I had to say

Ajarat

[boris268]

No this is for the same job. And now it's 15 times that he applied for the same job. 

[nawaraj_karki]

And here I am with no connects to apply for even one job post.

[the-right-writer]

You need to buy them.

[helal-mhu]

Strange! Normally I don't see any option to send a second proposal for the same job from my profile! But there is an option to submit a separate proposal from an agency account!

[the-right-writer]

It's not uncommon for a freelancer to submit multiple proposals for different jobs if they believe they are a good fit for those projects.

This freelancer applied multiple times for the same job. That is not allowed. Either they created multiple accounts or they are part of farming or perhaps an agency.

But I don't still think all what you said is true and I also did not say is not true cause is really hard to believ all what you just said. That's just all I had to say

Why do you have trouble believing the OP? Many clients have reported the same outcomes, and it is driving away clients. Who wouldn't leave with these kinds of results? I have seen client's proposals and I believe every word the OP said.

[sajal36]

I created a job and 5-6 proposals from the same guy

I think 1 freelancer can submit only 1 proposal for a job. When you mentioned 5-6 proposal from same guy, do you mean that guy have created similar 6 freelancer profile. If this is the case then you must report the person to Upwork. 

Another job I get 40 proposals in 10 min. Flooded with unqalified freshly created profiles. 

This is the common problem everywhere. Even if you post a job in any job board then you get huge number of applications. I think there is some slow down in economy which reflects in this situation. I observe that developer applying for a director and director applying for junior role. Definitely this trend has stressed recruiter and sometime qualified people get missed out in this over submission of applications / unqualified applications. I believe effective screening technique is the best solution in every situation. Moreover I have observed that upwork show pop up message to freelancer if their skills do not match the job post. And also filter out those profile in different category for job poster.

Another one with AI generated image of a fake person.

AI generated proposals letters. it's clear they just batch them out in huge quantaties like a factory.

This can be filter out without even putting more then a minute effort. I believe you were quickly able to filter out the same as per the message.

[yofazza]

Sajal, you asked about 'consistent 50 connects bid sequence', well.here it is

.

50 connects is given to new accounts.

Bot creator might not put enough effort to make their proposals 'feels' different enough.

Et cetera.

[boris268]

Yes as now there is 15 times the same guy applied for 1 job.

[3e33c876]

hahaha

[yofazza]

If it takes that long, it's probably from something worse; people who are so desperate that they can't find something more useful to do than signing up and sending proposals manually, hoping to circumvent or bait & switch when they got interviewed. But what can we say? This is in line with (or maybe one consequence of) Upwork's current direction.

[yofazza]

But btw, it's kind of relieving to see "jobs" like this got 20-50 proposals (where it will be 50+ soon as it's posted only 16 minutes ago), knowing the proposals they received are probably all like the ones described in this thread; "Dear Hiring Manager I understand you're seeking for a skilled Web App Developer where I have 5+ years experience and a keen eye..." . Scammers got spammed 😂

If link deleted. It's quite an obvious scam job because the scammer doesn't put too much effort into making it look credible.

[spectralua]

50+ already.

Spammers spamming scammers. It's a funny but one question: so no more place here for us, bots will chat with bots. Or no?

[782ef9e9]

Same thing happening in education: students use AI to write their papers and tutors use AI to assess and comment on students' work. A Brave New World.

[the-right-writer]

Many schools have strict rules against using AI. They work with other schools to learn how to detect plagiarism and theft. Kids have received failing grades because of its use.

[williamtcooper]

Mykola,

Yes, within a short period of time it will be common for AI bots to chat with other AI bots.

For example, scheduling by calendar an apppointment for a client and a freelancer to meet. Why should people waste their time with that time of task?

Schools that have data science, machine learning, deep learning, software engineering, math, and many other degrees would expect their students to use the available AI tools or graduate with a worthless degree.

Microsoft Copolit becomes available this November thereby making these types of tools the norm for enterprise employees that want to stay employed.

Beware of those that talk about plagarism, etc. because that means they don't even know how to use these tools properly. Those are mostly nightly news sound bites for the uninformed versus the experts.

[the-right-writer]

Beware of those that talk about plagarism, etc. because that means they don't even know how to use these tools properly. Those are mostly nightly news sound bites for the uninformed versus the experts.

Your comments would be funny if the situation did not have dire repercussions.

It's amazing to me, you still act as if you are the only one who understands "AI." Just because someone disagrees with you, you couldn't care less about their experience, you know better. You know nothing of my work, or the people I work with, or real AI.

You consistently refuse to answer any questions, no matter how polite, about the very real, legal issues around your beloved chatbots. Yes, Jasper et al. steal. They get things wrong. The reason they are amazing and can do so much is because the programs are programmed with real work done by real people without being informed, or compensated in any way.

I love how people assume and don't bother to read.

Real AI has nothing to do with chatbots. I think you need to see the definition, and others as well. I work with cutting edge scientists and medical specialists. Guess what? Any and all programs are based on the work of others. Any and all work based on the work of other people must be documented that the creators have been notified, given their consent, and approve of their work being used. If there are special considerations, they, too, must be documented or followed to the letter.

If you ever encountered real AI, you would be amazed.

[boris268]

Those that work in tech know that these chat bots and algorithms that can predict words are not real AI.

Spoiler alert , There is no AI yet.

What we see is just algorithms. In this age of "Algorithms" we will be spammed(Are already as seen on Upwork itself) with billions of simmilar looking stuff people create because nothing original or unique is getting created.

And then people will starve for new unique stuff that people want to see. This is why writers, artists and programmers/developers will be again in high demand. 

Let them all use these Algorithms for a while until they get bored how limited these tools are. As anyone who used these tools finds very fast that their capabilities are very generic and limited. 

[williamtcooper]

Artists and programmers that use the AI in their daily tasks are the winners. Artists and programmers that don't have been losing their jobs for almost a year.

[elisa_b]

"Just view the Upwork Profiles of those making these AI comments similar to mine versus those that think the old way is working"

You are comparing pears and apples too.

Or are you just saying that only people who earned over a million dollars are entitled to have an opinion? Just admit it, once and for all. Will you?

P.s. Many people don't work only on Upwork, so even if you wanted to compare your earnings or "success" to theirs, that would be incorrect.

P.s. 2 Worry not, just sit by the river and sooner or later, according to Sun Tzu, you will see our dead bodies carried by the flow, if you are right.

[boris268]

I usually don't check profiles but somehow I knew you are in Marketing for AI 😂.

If it helps you to create completly meanignless tasks I'm glad for you. 
As I stated above these tools are very generic and only use stuff people already created and re shuffle them.

Nothing new or original is getting created there. Just reshuffle of old stuff. 

My friend who is a web developer says it helps him to find snippets of code in 2 minutes. Then he spends 4 hours fixing that code to fit into his web app. He is so saved !

I used these tools myself very very much. It's good for very simplified tasks to search something very quickly.

But any deeper work these tools are garbage.  Especially in coding.

Even writing, I try to reply with chatgtp using the chatgtp addon for emails and in the end I have to re write them all the time because chat gtp writes like a horny teenager. 

I few weeks ago asked chatgtp to write me a Python code he kept just repeating the same code he found from Github over and over again. Stuck in a endless loop of hopefullness it was so comical. And it kept apologizing. 

So as I stated above those who work and know how these tools work , use them already before any marketing guru ever discovered them.

We are already over the hype, it's not interesting anymore.

We just wait for others who don't know or understand that they just are smarter search engines which are trained in data that is old already. 

After this period people will want new original content and my statement is true. 2024-2025 we will see that already because trends as they come really fast get boring really fast. 

[yofazza]

I'm so agree.

it helps him to find snippets of code in 2 minutes.

2 seconds probably. It helped me find answers that were harder to locate on Google.

When I'm not sure about the keywords to use, I could spend hours searching on Google. Where these AIs, with its "natural language processing" ability, can give me great keyword ideas in just 2 seconds from my "vague" question.

On questions such as "what's the more efficient method to [achieve something]", I'll take the keywords to Google which will find me some exact in-depth discussions, and also to ensure that I haven't been provided with false answers.

Then he spends 4 hours fixing that code

Yes, it's not yet a real intelligence that we can "tell" or even "guide" to create something that will fit perfectly into our specific situation. 

[williamtcooper]

Boris,

These tools need to be prompt engineered properly to avoid those types of neophyte usages.

Hopefully within a few years ChatGPT or another tool will be AGI.

[the-right-writer]

When their very existence is totally dependent on one thing, and a fairly recent change, too, you are never going to get them to see or accept reality. It's just ad after ad after ad. I am the professional and everyone else is a no talent hack. The complete lack of respect, refusal to look at or respond to logic, the refusal to acknowledge the very real and significant legal issues, lack of copyright, etc. and constant attacks on freelancers, telling clients not to hire them unless they have his approval, i.e. a certain level of money on this platform is demented.

Most of us are here to help others, not convince clients that they shouldn't hire them. It's fine to have differing opinions, debate and be passionate about your beliefs, but purposely telling clients to ignore freelancers due to some arbitrary monetary figure is a terrible thing to do to others, and negates any bluster about helping anyone.

The people I work with respect previous work, and do not want to become embroiled in a legal hassle over ownership, etc. Real AI is amazing, and has great potential to improve many areas of life, such as desalination, ways to collect water, and irrigation methods, ways to study the far-reaching cosmos, and in the medical realm, where it can aid surgeons doing the most sensitive of surgeries.

Real AI is not the chatbots. It's time people started to think for themselves, read, and learn. Don't take my word for it, or anyone else. It's every freelancer's rear end on the line, and they better learn what's happening with the law and the negative blow back from using programs that steal. None of the bots can think or create. They are predictive programs based on the work of other people. No one should assume someone knows what they are talking about in this important area. If you care about your career, your future, being able to claim the right to work, you need to learn before you find out the "expert" is wrong.

[fe9b8d82]

"Chat GPT writes like a **Edited for Community Guidelines** teenager..."

Best description of this garbage tool ever, thanks for the laugh!

[tlsanders]

I see the same thing as your code example in writing. Someone will say "AI wrote this piece and it only took an hour and a half to edit," and the end piece is virtually always something that could have been written from scratch in that same amount of time or less, but with better results. 

That probably won't always be true, but today most of the "writing" I see coming out of it would be C work for an 8th grader.

[the-right-writer]

Excellent, I'm so glad to see someone who can think objectively. No, the chatbots that people adore are not AI. I have even posted definitions, but the respondents apparently can't or won't read.

Real AI can be amazing. I've tried to explain, but some are so locked into the marketing, they have abandoned logic. When I work with experts in their field, and we are discussing the use of AI, much closer to AI than most people here have even imagined, you don't just start typing and stealing. Since AI is built on previous works, in professional fields, it must be established who owns what, and how can it be used. There is no, just start typing and steal from others. Of course theft happens in any field, but is not common amongst professionals who respect and honor the law, ethics, and don't want any problems with theft.

[tlsanders]

When you say "the experts," do you mean the consultants like you, or do you mean the defendants in the many copyright infringement lawsuits currently pending?

[williamtcooper]

Tiffany,

Please feel free to ignore my posts since your remarks toward me appear to be nonconstructive, acerbic, an attempt at leveling, and off topic.

[yofazza]

We do need an 'ignore this person' button indeed.

[yofazza]

And if I need to respond to that argument.

I don't see it as 'nonconstructive' when it questions false claims that are posted repeatedly, sometimes with personal attacks as well. Adressing someone else's property instead of their argument, IS already personal attack. Mods doesn't seem to understand this, they may delete this post if they want.

[the-right-writer]

For example, scheduling by calendar an apppointment for a client and a freelancer to meet. Why should people waste their time with that time of task?

Because they want to talk with the client and decide what works best, not when the chatbots see an opening.

Schools that have data science, machine learning, deep learning, software engineering, math, and many other degrees would expect their students to use the available AI tools or graduate with a worthless degree.

That is a sweeping statement, that is not true as written.

Microsoft Copolit becomes available this November thereby making these types of tools the norm for enterprise employees that want to stay employed.

Such grandiose, over-the-top generalizations.

What would someone have to do to get you to respond to the very real legal issues confronting users of ChatGPT, Jasper, etc.?

Since you changed careers, you refuse to accept the facts of usage of the chatbot programs. You may be willing, to risk it all, but it is wrong to encourage people to blindly use products that have enormous legal and copyright issues, and outstanding court cases pending. I don't care if Upwork promotes it or not. Upwork is not taking any risk, at all. The stuff that hits the fan will smack the freelancers, and clients, but won't concern Upwork, because it's the freelancers and clients without legal standing.

I have heard experts and professionals speak about the legal and ethical repercussions. It's unfortunate we do not have an expert on Upwork who can do the same.

[eciocon]

And here we are hardworking humans with work history in Upwork having a hard time trying to land jobs. 🤔

[a7c6f370]

Don't know what is going on with Upwork. Maybe that's why clients stop checking their job post because their post get flooded with these ai generated or non professional freelancers at start. I've been noticing most of the jobs I bid on stay open for weeks without clients even checking their post again.

About the proposal from same person you should report it to upwork as it's not allowed for freelancers to have more than one profile.

Upwork itself is encouraging freelancers to use AI in their proposals but I think it's of no use.

[elisa_b]

Boris, thanks for sharing your experience. Upwork is no longer what it used to be, no wonder clients run away and never come back if those are the proposals they get. The management ruined everything, transforming a golden platform into manure.

[a24fe6e1]

Good for everything and every one 

[feed_my_eyes]

Upwork should stop giving out any free connects. No free connects for signing up, and no free monthly connects. The freebies don't really help honest freelancers anyway, they only incentivise the dishonest ones to sign up for multiple accounts. 

[the-right-writer]

Well said.