Choosing an AI data collection provider means verifying how the proposed work will run. For speech, compare speaker sourcing, screening, subcontractors, recording controls, annotations, QA, source and privacy records, rights, capacity, schedule, and price.
This guide provides a like-for-like checklist. The speech data collection service page collects a Spirelight brief; every provider, including Spirelight, should be evaluated from written project-specific evidence.
What to evaluate in a speech data collection provider
A provider may recruit participants, record data, annotate it, run QA, or combine those workstreams. Do not assume one universal delivery bundle. The proposal should state the audio, transcripts, metadata, QA evidence, source and permission records, privacy artifacts, rights, and acceptance criteria included.
Supplier category does not establish capability. Compare every provider on project-specific sourcing, consent and provenance evidence where applicable, QA timing, subcontractors, facilities, schedule assumptions, and a written cost breakdown.
Choose the collection format
Scripted recording uses fixed prompts. Prompted tasks give participants a scenario while allowing original phrasing. Spontaneous conversation captures open dialogue. Each format changes moderation, annotation, usable-hour yield, and QA assumptions. Ask suppliers to price the same speech type and acceptance rule.
The custom speech data collection guide explains how to define a pilot for each format.
Choose the recording environment
Studio, on-site, and remote collection make different tradeoffs in control, target-environment match, device diversity, safety, privacy, and cost. Match the method to the deployment and require a held-out acceptance sample. The on-site recording guide covers site responsibilities.
Provider diligence checklist
- Sourcing. Name recruiting channels, speaker cells, screening, compensation assumptions, subcontractors, and feasibility evidence.
- Rights and privacy. Request source and permission records, the license, applicable lawful basis and notices, retention, transfers, and consent records when consent is relied on.
- Recording controls. Specify equipment, environment, channel layout, moderation, security, and handling of failed sessions.
- Annotations and QA. Require guidelines, reviewer qualifications, agreement method, sampling, thresholds, rework, and acceptance evidence.
- Capacity and schedule. Record pilot size, usable-hour definition, batch cadence, dependencies, contingency, and change control.
- Commercial scope. Compare minimums, setup and facility charges, included work, currency, taxes, payment terms, and final price.
A summary answer is not proof of weakness, but it is not sufficient evidence. Ask for the underlying documents or make their delivery a contract condition.
Compare quotes like for like
Public pricing and provider category do not prove operational quality or cost structure. Retain a public figure only with its direct source, date, currency, minimum, configuration, and included work; otherwise use it as a lead for a current quote.
A quote may include recruiting, facilities, equipment, moderation, annotation, QA, security, rights, delivery, and project management. Do not infer margins, contractor premiums, or subcontractor fees. Ask the supplier to itemize the parts relevant to the brief. The speech data collection cost guide provides a comparison worksheet.
Check existing sources before commissioning
Compare finished assets, licensed sources, and custom collection against one specification. Spirelight's dataset catalog publishes 60 conversational dataset listings with declared hours, speaker counts and price per hour; for anything it does not cover, confirm every field of a custom collection in writing. The small speech datasets guide explains pilot sizing.
How Spirelight should be evaluated
Spirelight can assess scripted, prompted, or conversational speech briefs. Feasibility, recruiting, recording location, moderators, annotations, reviewers, QA, privacy and provenance records, rights, sample availability, capacity, schedule, deliverables, and price are confirmed per project.
Name every artifact required by legal, security, and model teams in the brief. Do not infer a universal documentation bundle from company location or a configuration page. The EU AI Act and speech data guide provides a scoped records checklist.