DANNY DE HEK
Scammers rely on silence. We make noise.
Welcome to the Avengers Anti-Fraud Alliance, led by Danny de Hek, a New Zealand investigative journalist whose work exposing scams, Ponzi schemes, MLMs and financial fraud has been featured by The New York Times, Bloomberg, The Guardian, ABC Australia, RNZ and others.
This podcast takes you inside real investigations.
We follow the money, identify the people behind fraudulent operations, examine corporate records, court documents, blockchain transactions, marketing material, leaked communications and digital evidence — then put what we find into the public record.
Some investigations begin with a victim contacting me. Others start with an anonymous tip, a suspicious Zoom meeting, a cryptocurrency wallet, a court filing, or an Avenger somewhere in the world saying: “Danny, you need to look at this.”
The Avengers Anti-Fraud Alliance brings together researchers, whistleblowers, victims and ordinary people who are tired of watching scammers operate without scrutiny.
Patreon helps fund that work and gives supporters a closer look behind the investigations — including updates, evidence, developing stories and material that doesn't always fit into a YouTube video.
I don't accept payment to remove investigations. I don't sell reputation management. And when someone I investigate disagrees with my reporting, I give them the opportunity to respond.
The objective is simple:
Investigate. Analyse. Expose. Protect.
If you're a victim, whistleblower or you've discovered something that deserves investigating, get in touch.
Scams thrive in darkness. The Avengers turn on the lights.
DANNY DE HEK
SHIFT AI Scam or Legit? Marty Hale’s Pre-Launch AI Credit Scheme, Passive Income & Ponzi Red Flags
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
I started looking at SHIFT AI because the pitch sounded simple: buy AI credits, access multiple AI tools through one platform, and potentially earn money from the growth of the ecosystem. But after reviewing Marty Hale’s presentations, SHIFT AI’s own opportunity material and the growing network of promoters, one question kept getting bigger: where is the money actually coming from?
THE INVESTIGATION BEGINS
SHIFT AI says it combines leading AI services into one platform while allowing participants to earn through EcoPay and AI credits.
But its own opportunity presentation says the company is “currently in pre-launch,” while promotional material displays a dashboard showing $198,352,987 in total revenue, more than $78 million in EcoPay transactions and over 128,000 global creators.
Are those real operating figures, projections or illustrative data? If the $198 million is genuine revenue, whose revenue is it?
FOLLOWING THE MONEY
SHIFT AI says up to 50% of ecosystem gross revenue can be distributed through ClubPay, ConnectPay, ContentPay, CreditPay and CompetePay.
I watched Marty Hale explain how participants can purchase additional AI credits to improve their position on the CreditPay leaderboard.
In one example, Hale described somebody buying around $5,000 worth of credits every week without using them, saying the participant viewed the credits “like stock.”
Then came this:
“You might buy $1,000 of more credits and make $3,000 more cash.”
Hale has also described participants “jockeying” for leaderboard positions before the weekly cut-off, with approximately 48% of weekly revenue potentially arriving during the final ten minutes on Tuesday.
That raises an obvious question: are people buying credits because they need more AI, or because buying credits could help them make more money?
THE LEADERBOARD
I obtained a SHIFT AI leaderboard displaying substantial amounts beside ranked participants, including figures approaching $100,000.
I have not independently verified those figures as money actually received, so I treat them as amounts displayed by SHIFT AI rather than verified earnings.
Then I watched promoter Greg Sain explain the leaderboard.
Sain estimated that somebody might spend another “four or five grand” on credits before saying, “But he’s going to make 20.” He predicted “big money people are going to be fighting every Tuesday” as participants compete for position.
Hale himself has described the concept even more bluntly:
“This leaderboard gives you the ability to buy money.”
THE PROMOTERS ARRIVE
As my investigation expanded, I documented promotional activity involving Pierre Maxim, Michael Lucas, Marquita from The Residual Master, Jaime Soriano, Mark Oestreich, Sal Khan, T. LeMont Silver and Greg Sain.
Referral links appeared. Claimed earnings appeared. Compensation presentations appeared. People discussed passive income, purchasing credits and positioning themselves within the system.
Then I heard Hale tell an audience:
“Stop asking questions. Just stop it.”
When discussing what to say if a prospect asks something a promoter cannot answer, Hale suggested:
“That’s a good question, but I don’t know. What I do know is if you become a club member, you get paid every day.”
For an opportunity involving potentially substantial amounts of money, I believe people should be doing precisely the opposite.
They should be asking questions.
PATENTS, PARTNERSHIPS AND PROOF
I also examined SHIFT AI’s technology claims.
Presentations refer to more than 20 major AI platforms. Other explanations have put the number at 26 or 27. Hale has spoken about partners, an exclusive relationship and patented technology.
Those words have meanings.
Using another company’s AI technology does not necessarily establish a commercial partnership. And claiming technology is patent-protected is different from providing a patent or application that people can independently examine.
These claims should be capable of documentation.
THE QUESTION THAT REMAINS
SHIFT AI appears to have functioning AI services. That isn’t the central issue I’m investigating.
The issue is the economics surrounding them.
When participants can buy credits, receive compensation funded from ecosystem revenue, compete on leaderboards influenced by credit purchases and potentially purchase more credits in pursuit of larger payouts, why those credits are being purchased becomes critically important.
Ignore the Lamborghinis. Ignore the yachts. Ignore the screenshots of enormous earnings. Ignore the AI buzzwords.
Follow the credits.
Follow the compensation.
Follow the revenue.
Follow the money.
The Avengers Anti-Fraud Alliance is a community supporting independent investigations into scams, Ponzi schemes, MLMs, crypto fraud and the people behind them.
Led by New Zealand investigative journalist Danny de Hek, the Avengers help uncover information, connect victims, analyse evidence and expose schemes that deserve public scrutiny.
We investigate. We expose. We protect.
Podcasts we love
Check out these other fine podcasts recommended by us, not an algorithm.