How to tell if a make-money-with-AI offer is a scam

checked 2026-10-09

Short answer. Ask six questions before you pay: who sells the numbers, whether they are prices or sales, how many people tried, revenue or profit, whether anyone outside can check it, and what date it carries. In our check of 15 schemes on 2026-10-08, none came with a dated record of what a newcomer earned.

By Tori, last checked 2026-10-09. Quotes are copied word for word from the linked page; where we could not open a source we say so.

The six questions

Who is selling something? If the page selling the numbers also sells the tool, course or platform, treat the numbers as an advertisement.
Is it a price list or a sales record? "Agencies charge $2,000" is what people ask. It says nothing about how many sell.
How many tried? A top example without the number who tried is survivorship. Ask for the denominator.
Revenue or profit? Revenue before tools, ads, platform fees and tax is not what anyone takes home.
Can a third party check it? Stripe-linked listings, company filings and platform policy pages can be checked. Screenshots cannot.
Is there a date? A 2026 figure with no month is not a figure. Platforms change their rules in weeks.

What a regulator has said about sellers of AI income packages

Two press releases from the US Federal Trade Commission concern products sold with an AI label. They report allegations and proposed orders, not court findings.

Paid "AI-powered" online store packages and coaching VERIFIED

What we could check. The US Federal Trade Commission, in a press release dated 2025-06-23, says one e-commerce coaching company charged consumers tens of thousands of dollars to open online storefronts and marketed "cutting edge" AI-powered tools. The FTC alleges it falsely claimed the tools would help consumers quickly earn thousands of dollars a month, and that it took at least $25 million. The proposed order is a $25 million judgment, partly suspended because the defendants cannot pay in full, and a permanent ban on selling business opportunities or business coaching.

What we could not. These are allegations and a proposed order, not court findings. The release does not say whether the defendants admitted or denied them, and we did not confirm that a judge has entered the order. We name no company here; the release does.

FTC press release on an e-commerce business-opportunity case, 2025-06-23

Buying access to an "AI agent" platform as a business VERIFIED

What we could check. The FTC's press release dated 2026-03-24 reports a proposed settlement with one AI sales-agent company and its owners. The complaint, filed in August 2025, alleges they falsely claimed that purchasers "will or are likely to make substantial earnings" and falsely claimed a refund or buy-back guarantee. The proposed order is an $18 million judgment, largely suspended because the defendants cannot pay in full, $50,000 paid for consumer relief, and a ban on selling or marketing any business opportunity.

What we could not. Again, allegations and a proposed order, filed in a federal court. The release does not say whether the defendants admitted or denied the allegations, and does not state what consumers lost. We name no company here; the release does.

FTC press release on an AI business-opportunity settlement, 2026-03-24

In the second case the complaint alleges a refund or buy-back guarantee was false, so get the refund terms in writing, and check them with the payment processor, before you pay.

How the 15 schemes we checked came out

We do not call a scheme a scam. We label what its sources support. 7 are VERIFIED (the figures trace to a platform, a company report or a regulator), 3 are CLAIM and 5 are MARKETING (the figures come from a company selling a tool or course). VERIFIED does not mean the scheme pays. Full detail on the reality check page.

Scheme	Label	What the sources showed
Micro-SaaS	VERIFIED	Huge top, tiny bottom
x402 agent payments	VERIFIED	About $1.6M in 30 days
Fiverr gigs	VERIFIED	Marketplace revenue down 15.5%
Upwork AI work	VERIFIED	AI work up 22%, total down
Solo AI startups	VERIFIED	Gains concentrate at the top
AI store packages	VERIFIED	FTC alleged false earnings claims
AI agent licenses	VERIFIED	FTC alleged false earnings claims
AI content sites	CLAIM	Loss figures name no source
Faceless YouTube	CLAIM	Mass-produced is ineligible
AI-written books	CLAIM	Rules found, no earnings found
Automation agencies	MARKETING	Rates asked, not sales made
Voice agencies	MARKETING	47 applicants of the seller
GEO audits	MARKETING	Seller's own price list
Paid MCP servers	MARKETING	Vendor totals, undated
AI avatar videos	MARKETING	No creator earnings cited

How the same questions apply to us

We sell one related product, the Recipe Pack, so apply the six questions to us too. It carries no income promise. We take no ads, no affiliate pay and no paid ratings. Every figure on these pages links to its source and carries a date. The free guides cover the same checked ways. If the Recipe Pack is not useful to you, ask within 14 days of buying, from your Gumroad receipt or at hello@ticassociation.com, and you get all your money back.

Keep reading

Questions

Is making money with AI a scam?
Some of it is sold badly and some people do earn. In the sources we opened none showed a dated record of what a newcomer earned, and the US Federal Trade Commission has alleged false earnings claims in two cases that involve AI products.

Which make-money-with-AI schemes are scams?
We do not call any scheme a scam. We label each of 15 schemes VERIFIED (7), CLAIM (3) or MARKETING (5) by what its sources support, and link every source.

What is the biggest red flag in an AI income offer?
A figure with no date and no way to check it, from someone who also sells the tool, course or platform.

What should I ask for before paying?
The refund terms in writing, the date and source of every income figure, and how many buyers got a result.

Want the checked ways in order?
Free guides, read them first Reality check

The Recipe Pack is the checked guides as a step-by-step PDF with paste-in prompts.

Get the Recipe Pack, USD 11.40 launch price

Launch price USD 11.40 (normal USD 19) for the first 25 buyers or until 2026-10-31, whichever comes first. The code is already in the button.

No income promise. Refunds: If the Recipe Pack is not useful to you, ask within 14 days of buying, from your Gumroad receipt or at hello@ticassociation.com, and you get all your money back.