Global human cloud revenue — which includes firms such as Uber and Upwork —generated revenue of between $25.6 billion and $28.6 billion in 2015, according to a report by Staffing Industry Analysts.

"2016 is not over yet, but the upward trajectory is continuing," said David Francis, research analyst at Staffing Industry Analysts.

The earlier report defines the human cloud as “a set of work intermediation models that enable work arrangements of various kinds to be established and completed (including payment of workers) entirely through a digital/online platform.” It details the relationship between the human cloud and the gig economy and provides global market size estimates, forecasts and key insights.

In addition, it defines three categories of human cloud platforms – online staffing platforms, online work services and crowdsourcing – and includes lists of firms by category. Additionally, the report ranks the top 43 companies by human cloud revenue globally, covering those companies generating at least $25 billion in 2015.

The top five human cloud firms are:

Geographically, the USA and China have the highest number of human cloud platforms respectively, with human cloud platforms present in at least 30 countries worldwide. The UK, Canada and Australia are the next largest by number of human cloud companies.

“It’s really exciting to see businesses and consumers starting to embrace alternative work models made possible by new digital work intermediaries,” Francis said.

“The earliest human cloud companies have been around for more than a decade,” he said. “However, the rate of adoption and innovation in the human cloud is accelerating, which is reflected in the global revenue growth of the human cloud, as well as by increased worker participation and client adoption. Staffing firms, human resource and procurement leaders, investors and regulatory agencies need to take note and stay abreast of changes in this dynamic and growing part of the global workforce.”

Staffing Industry Analysts will facilitate a further in-depth look into the human cloud, with a number of the leading brands in this dynamic segment addressing their businesses, their strategies and the implications for the future of the staffing industry in sessions taking place Feb. 15, 2017 during Staffing Industry Analysts’ Executive Forum in San Diego.

The Gig Economy and Human Cloud: 2016 Update is available for Staffing Industry Analysts’ corporate and CWS council members.