The 2026 AI Guru Scam Playbook: How "Automation Agency" Courses Replaced Dropshipping
Remember when every fake guru was selling dropshipping courses? Those days are over. The Lamborghini-renting, Dubai-flexing grifter has evolved. The 2026 version wears a Patagonia vest, talks about "AI anxiety," and promises to teach you how to start an "AI Automation Agency" with zero coding skills.
Same scam. New wrapper.
According to Editorialge's 2026 Course Scam Audit, the era of dropshipping and Amazon FBA courses has been replaced by "AI-powered" experts who exploit fears about job displacement. The pitch has changed from "make money while you sleep" to "don't get left behind by AI."
The underlying mechanics haven't changed at all.
The new scam funnel: from comment to credit card
Here's how the 2026 guru scam works. It's more sophisticated than the old model, but follows the same playbook once you see the pattern.
Step 1: The hook
You see a video. Someone who looks successful (ring light, clean background, confident delivery) talks about how AI is eliminating jobs. They mention that most people will be replaced. But there's an opportunity. A small group of people are building "AI automation agencies" and making six figures helping businesses implement AI. No coding required. They're looking for a few people to mentor.
Comment "INFO" if you want to learn more.
Step 2: The setter
When you comment "INFO," you're not talking to the guru. You're entering a sales funnel staffed by commission-only workers. The person who DMs you is a "setter." Their job is to qualify you and book you onto a Zoom call.
They ask questions designed to make you feel understood: What's your current situation? What are your goals? Have you tried other opportunities before? They're not listening to help you. They're listening for objections they'll need to overcome later.
Step 3: The closer
The Zoom call is with a "closer." This person has a script, and they're good at it. They've been trained on high-pressure sales tactics. The call follows a predictable structure:
The price is usually between $3,000 and $15,000. They have payment plans. They'll help you "find" the money.
Step 4: The course
If you buy, you get access to videos that teach you how to cold email businesses offering "AI automation services." The course content is usually generic information available for free on YouTube. The "AI tools" they teach are things like Zapier integrations and ChatGPT prompts.
There's often a community component, a Discord or Skype group. This serves two purposes: it provides social proof that others are "in the program," and it creates peer pressure to not ask for refunds.
Why "AI automation agency" specifically?
The angle is calculated. The Editorialge report explains that scammers in 2026 exploit "AI Anxiety" because fear of being replaced by technology is widespread and emotionally charged. It's harder to sell dropshipping when everyone knows someone who failed at it. AI is new enough that people don't have that reference point yet.
The "agency" framing is also intentional. It sounds legitimate, business-to-business, professional. Much classier than "make money on Amazon." The guru can position themselves as a consultant training other consultants, not a get-rich-quick schemer.
And "no coding required" does heavy lifting. It removes the objection that this is only for technical people. Anyone can do it. You just need the right system.
How to identify the scam
The patterns are consistent once you know what to look for:
The guru has no verifiable business history. They claim to run a successful agency, but you can't find clients, case studies with real company names, or evidence of actual work. Their "proof" is screenshots that could be faked in thirty seconds.
The content is about selling, not doing. Watch their free content. Is it teaching you actual skills, or is it just building toward a sales pitch? Gurus who run real businesses share real information. Scammers share just enough to seem credible while withholding anything useful.
The DM funnel feels like sales, not help. Legitimate educators answer questions. They don't run you through a qualification process designed to extract your budget and timeline.
The price is suspiciously high for video content. $5,000+ for recorded videos and a Discord server is not normal. The high price is a feature of the scam, not a bug. It makes you feel invested, which makes you less likely to admit you got scammed.
Everything is urgent. Limited spots. Price going up. Cohort closing. This is artificial scarcity designed to prevent you from thinking clearly or doing research.
The Instagram account exposing these people
@BallerBusters has been documenting what they call "#FlexOffenders" for years. The account exposes people who pose with rented cars, private jets they booked for photos, and fabricated success markers. Then use those images to sell courses to followers.
Their approach is simple: verify the claims. Is that their car or a rental? Is that their house or an Airbnb? Do their supposed revenue numbers match any verifiable business?
The answer is usually no.
What actually works
If you genuinely want to build an AI-related service business, here's what the gurus won't tell you:
Learn actual skills first. Before you can sell AI automation, you need to understand what AI can and can't do. Take free courses. Build things. Fail at projects. This takes months, not a weekend watching videos.
Start small and specific. Don't offer "AI automation for businesses." That's too vague. Offer one specific service to one specific type of business. "I help real estate agents automate their follow-up emails using AI" is a real offer. "I help businesses leverage AI" is nothing.
Work for cheap or free initially. Your first clients are buying your potential, not your track record. Charge less than you're worth to build case studies you can actually reference.
Talk to real business owners. Cold email works, but not the template spam the courses teach. Research specific businesses, identify real problems they have, and propose specific solutions. This requires actual effort per outreach, which is why scammers don't teach it.
The truth nobody selling $5,000 courses wants you to know: building a real service business is hard, takes time, and has no shortcuts. The people who succeed do the work. The people who buy courses usually don't.
Related reading
FAQ
Are all AI courses scams?
No. Legitimate educators exist. The difference is usually: legitimate courses cost less, offer specific skills rather than "systems," don't use high-pressure sales tactics, and the instructors have verifiable track records building actual things.
What if I already bought a course like this?
Check refund policies immediately. Many have 30-day windows. If that's passed, your credit card company may help with a chargeback if you can document deceptive practices. Don't let sunk cost fallacy make you stay in the program.
How do the setters and closers sleep at night?
Some don't know they're part of a scam. They're told they're helping people access life-changing education. Others know and don't care. The commission structures are designed to align incentives with sales, not outcomes.
Why don't these people get prosecuted?
Because they're technically selling education, which is legal. The course exists. They delivered it. Whether it's worth the price is subjective. This is why due diligence matters before you buy, not after.
Is there any legitimate way to build an AI automation business?
Yes, but it requires learning real skills, starting small, building a track record, and accepting that it takes time. Anyone promising fast results with no skills is lying to you.