Where do AI teams get affordable, high-quality labeled data?

I'm part of a team working on a data labeling platform (venso.xyz), and we’re exploring how small AI teams and researchers find data annotation support.

Tools like Scale AI are great but often priced out of reach for small labs or startups.

Curious to hear what tools/strategies others use, or if people would consider alternatives with trained in-house teams and lower cost.

Thanks in advance!