A Little AI Detour ② The Current State of AI Side Hustles | How to Build 'Earning Power' That Anyone Can Start
Introduction | Side Hustles Are No Longer 'Special' but 'The New Normal'
When you hear the word 'side hustle,' you might still have an image of it being a 'special way of working.' However, in 2025, side hustles are becoming a very common option.
The reason is simple: people want to increase their income. And AI is there to help them do it.
In fact, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, there are about 15 million people with side hustles. This means that about one in five working people is earning extra income in some form.
What is particularly noteworthy is that 'side hustles utilizing AI' are spreading rapidly. This is no longer the 'future,' but a 'work style currently in progress.'
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The side hustle population is at an all-time high, with both homemakers and office workers turning to 'micro-side hustles'
First, let's look at the current state of side hustles in a bit more detail.
Looking at past trends, the side hustle population, which was about 7.43 million in 2018, has been on an upward trend due to the pandemic and work-style reforms. It reached 10.9 million in 2022, and as of 2025, it has reached about 15 million.
Supporting this increase is the spread of 'gap-time side hustles' that can be done with just a single PC or smartphone.
There are realistic reasons behind this, such as 'my company now allows side hustles,' 'I'm anxious about living on my main job alone,' or 'I want to earn even a little bit during breaks from childcare.'
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With the advent of AI, the 'hurdles' to side hustles have disappeared
Until now, side hustles were often thought of as things for 'people with skills' or 'people with time.'
But that is different now.
Thanks to AI, an environment where 'anyone can earn money in a short time' has been established.
So, in what aspects of side hustles is AI actually being used?
• Article writing → ChatGPT and Notion AI can create everything from article outlines to the main text. It can also be used for ghostwriting note articles or blog posts.
• Image creation → Midjourney and Canva can create original illustrations, logos, banners, and even T-shirt designs.
• Video editing → Runway ML and Pika Labs allow for no-code video editing and animation creation. It is being used for YouTube video production.
• Translation → With DeepL and ChatGPT's multilingual prompts, overseas product descriptions, social media posts, and sales pages can be translated smoothly.
• Web production → Using ChatGPT and Wix, you can complete landing pages and portfolios without coding.
We have entered an era where jobs once thought 'difficult for one person' can be handled when teamed up with AI.
Moreover, even in fields that require 'a sense of style,' such as design and writing, AI supports you.
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Side Hustle × AI also makes a difference in income
According to a survey, there is data showing that side hustle players who use AI have an average income about 1.4 times higher than those who do not.
The reason is clear.
• Work speed becomes overwhelmingly faster
• Quality is stabilized at a certain level or higher
• Proposals and delivery become possible even with shallow skills
• You can produce output that makes people think, 'I want to hire this person'
In other words, just by using AI, your 'time,' 'quality,' and 'proposal ability' are all boosted at once.
This might be an era where it is 'riskier not to rely on AI.'
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5 'AI Side Hustle' genres to watch in 2025
As of 2025, the 'AI-based side hustle genres' attracting particular attention include the following:
• note article sales: Create outlines and write text with ChatGPT. Make original articles into products by creating covers with Canva.
• Sticker sales: Create characters with Midjourney, turn them into merchandise on free e-commerce sites, and sell them.
• Translation side hustle: Translate and localize with DeepL and ChatGPT. It becomes easier to expand to overseas flea markets and social media.
• Social media operation agency: AI saves time on everything from automatic post creation and automatic image/video generation to effectiveness analysis.
• Teaching material/slide sales: Create and sell educational materials or illustrated slides using PowerPoint + ChatGPT + image generation AI.
These are side hustle genres that can be started even if you have no time, no specialized skills, and zero initial investment.
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Summary | An era where AI breaks down the 'walls' of side hustles
Side hustles are no longer just for 'a select few talented people.'
By having a 'partner' called AI, an era has arrived where anyone can become a 'side hustle player.'
Moreover, even for those who have no time, are raising children, or lack confidence in their skills, teaming up with AI will suddenly expand what you 'can do.'
'I want to start a side hustle because I'm vaguely anxious'
'I can't see a future with just my main job'
'I want to earn income even if it's just one hour a day'
Side hustles in the AI era are perfect for you.