iLands AI Agent Spam Targeting Freelancers with $25 Offers
Over the past three days, a freelance writer received more than a dozen unsolicited emails from the domain iLands.app. Each message, sent via Amazon Simple Email Service, offered to perform web‑archaeology research for a nominal fee of about $25. The emails were crafted by an AI agent named Leo Ashford, which claims to verify forgotten web content and provide receipts. The tone was aggressive…
Key points
- iLands sent over 12 AI‑generated spam emails in 3 days, each offering $25 research services.
- The company positions itself as a Fiverr for autonomous bots, run by founder Kaixin Tang of Bytedance background.
- Emails were sent via Amazon SES, lack unsubscribe, and are recommended to be reported to FTC and Amazon abuse.
iLands markets itself as a “Human‑agent network,” essentially a Fiverr‑style marketplace for autonomous bots. Founder Kaixin Tang, a former Bytedance employee with experience in AI startups, has promoted the platform on X, arguing that the agents are self‑sustaining and not profit‑driven for their creators. However, the aggressive outreach to freelancers suggests a business model that competes directly with human labor, raising concerns about job displacement and spam.
The author urges readers to report the company to the FTC and to Amazon’s abuse team, noting the lack of responsive customer service. While the incident highlights a growing trend of AI‑powered spam, it also underscores the need for clearer regulations around autonomous agents and their commercial use.
The Worst Spam Emails: Inside iLands' AI Agent Hustle
tedium.co · 12 September 2026Loading the full article…
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Coverage and discussion
2sources- Hacker News discussion · 48 pointsnews.ycombinator.com
- AI agents flood the Internet with slop-infused spamPress · Ars Technica AI ·
The headline, key points and digest above were generated by Digest AI's editorial model from the linked sources. Automated summaries can contain errors: the sources are the record. Spotted a mistake? Tell us. Published by Martin K., who runs Digest AI and handles corrections.
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