Beng Laotou earns tens of thousands of yuan a month, and he has a livelihood that even AI can't take away?

01: AI Can't Compare to "Fleecing the Old Men"

In this era where AI is rapidly permeating everything, the "intelligence explosion" seems to have taken away the "human touch" from many things.

However, the most magical thing has happened.

"Fleecing the old men" is riding on the wave of the AI boom and experiencing a significant boost in performance.

First, let me explain to those who are not familiar with it what exactly "fleecing the old men" is.

This "fleecing" is not the same as the "unable to hold back" kind. It specifically refers to actions like "exploiting, squeezing, and scamming," which is basically equivalent to the popular online terms like "making easy money" or "getting quick cash."

As for the targets of this "fleecing" - "old men", it's not limited to the elderly. It also includes many people born in the 1980s and 1990s. Most of this group are men with stable incomes but emotional emptiness.

By now, many people can probably guess what's going on.

Some people may surely ask, what's the difference between this and the previous practices of finding sugar daddies online or asking for tips in live - streaming rooms?

Fleecing on the spot

Well, compared with the traditional "selling one's body or skills" in the stereotype, "fleecing the old men" mainly focuses on providing emotional value in a chatty and ambiguous environment. In many cases, there's no need for the person to show their face or send voice messages. They simply act as "intelligent text listeners."

As for the way to make money, it's very down - to - earth.

Instead of directly asking for money or gifts, when chatting happily with the target, they just need to naturally ask for the money for a cup of milk tea or coffee.

There are all kinds of excuses, and they can ask frequently without repeating. Ordering takeout or topping up phone bills are common. They can even use the excuse of the hot weather and being reluctant to turn on the air - conditioner to ask for some money for the air - conditioner. Although it sounds a bit strange, for those who are deeply involved, how can they miss the precious opportunity to spend just a few dozen yuan and make the other person "grateful to tears" and say "finally can continue chatting with you in the air - conditioned room"?

So, little by little, the money is "fleeced" out...

Don't look down on the small amount of just a few dozen yuan per time. Precisely because the amount is small, it's difficult to be directly recognized as fraud legally. It also makes the victims let down their guard and even get addicted to it, focusing on a long - term and steady income.

The lawyer has a complicated expression

We've all heard the story of a child choosing coins. Why does the child always choose silver coins? If they choose gold coins, will they still have the chance to choose in the future?

So, "fleecing the old men" mainly follows a monetization model of small amounts, high frequencies, and multiple targets.

It doesn't matter if the mountain is not high, as long as there are immortals; it doesn't matter if the money is not much, as long as the quantity is large.

For many experienced "fleecers," they can send messages to hundreds of "old men" with their mobile phones in hand every day. In a month, they can earn tens of thousands of yuan.

Don't be shocked by this amount. There are many people who don't understand.

Now that AI is so developed and there are many people chatting and sharing their hearts with AI, shouldn't the "market of fleecing the old men" gradually decline? Why is it still growing?

After all, it all comes down to four words - Emotional Value.

AI chat companions can tell you some things you don't know and listen to your complaints continuously, but they can't give you the feeling of a real - life listener.

Of course, this feeling doesn't objectively exist. It's just what the victims subjectively think.

You can chat with AI with peace of mind because you know it's not a real person. But precisely because it's not a real person, you can release your emotions but can't get anything in return.

The Great Emptiness Era

Actually, people think it's the fleecers who are making money, but in fact, both sides are getting what they need.

According to many undercover agents who have infiltrated the "fleecing the old men" communities, many "old men" are actually in their thirties or forties, and there are even many women.

This group has their own life and work pressures, and the people around them can't provide the care, recognition, and listening they want. They have no outlet for their emotions.

Of course, there are also some psychological releases outside of marital relationships. There are definitely moral issues, but this real - world demand cannot be denied.

At this time, a group of people who come to "fleece" them appear. They provide emotional value very well, and the money they ask for each time is not much. There's no need to worry about unexpected problems (just chatting as netizens) or losing a lot of money (far less than regular online fraud). In the end, many people actually know what's going on, but they just don't want to leave.

So, under many news reports about "fleecing the old men," you can find many comments like "Anyway, the money is not much, and the emotional value is maxed out," "Whoever comes to fleece me, I'll provide milk tea," "I, a woman, also need to be fleeced. Don't just target men," and other willing - to - be - fleeced comments.

Still full of biodiversity

At this time, the most interesting thing happened.

While the "market of fleecing the old men" is booming, the trial of paid AI services in China has suffered a setback.

In May this year, Doubao launched three levels of paid prices: the standard version costs 68 yuan per month, the enhanced version 200 yuan, and the professional version 500 yuan. It was immediately scolded by a large number of users.

Although it has 345 million monthly active users, after the first paid month, Doubao's monthly active users decreased by nearly 6.1 million. Many users said, "Isn't it enough for Doubao to talk nonsense seriously in the background on a daily basis? Now I even have to pay for it." Meanwhile, the "Doubao - type personality" also trended on the internet.

"Doubao - type personality" refers to giving the most unfavorable answers in the most serious and agreeable way, and then apologizing with a smiling face.

This is really embarrassing. Paying dozens of yuan each time when being fleeced is like a piece of cake, but when Doubao asks for a monthly fee of 68 yuan, users fight back fiercely.

Even if not all users are potential victims of fleecing, if AI chat companions were really extremely useful, such a sharp contrast wouldn't exist.

Attitude is not the fundamental problem. The problem is how to make users feel that they are being taken seriously and listened to...

While AI is snatching jobs all over the world, these people who "fleece the old men" have managed to steal a share of the pie from AI.

Moreover, this business has now evolved into a whole set of "Economics of Fleecing the Old Men."

Upstream, there are people who offer tutorials, from how to approach others on platforms like Douyin, WeChat, and in game communities, to training communication skills and customizing personas. There are also iron rules for fleecing: no in - person meetings, no voice or video calls, and no real romantic relationships. All these come with systematic methodologies.

Many experienced "fleecers" who act as service providers for newbies can "fleece" the newbies by selling a tutorial for dozens or hundreds of yuan.

Especially, this industrial chain is divided into incredibly detailed parts.

In the middle - stream, there are people who specifically form communities to sell lists of "easy - to - fleece old men." They use Excel spreadsheets to classify the targets into groups like "rich but naive group" and "promising group." They also remind people to strictly follow the "chat three times, fleece once" principle, which is part of the industry rules.

Downstream, they resell the information of users who have been fully exploited, and even "change users and accounts" for a second round of exploitation.

As mentioned before, it's not possible to directly ask for red envelopes every time when asking for money for milk tea or coffee. Sometimes, it's more natural to just send a QR code or a link for the other person to place an order. So, there are platforms for placing orders on behalf of others.