Episodes

  • Pricing, Tesla Accidents and Travis Kalanick

    Pricing, Tesla Accidents and Travis Kalanick
    Jun 27 2025
    New pricing punishes drivers, Tesla's bumpy start and Travis returns. LegalRideshare breaks it down. STUDY: NEW PRICING HURTS DRIVERS Uber's new dynamic pricing is hurting drivers. The Guardian reported: Research by academics at New York's Columbia Business School concluded that the Silicon Valley company had implemented “algorithmic price discrimination” that had raised “rider fares and cut driver pay on billions of … trips, systematically, selectively, and opaquely”. The Columbia paper, which focused on 24,532 trips made by a single US Uber driver, concluded that the introduction of the new algorithm had allowed Uber to “significantly increase its take rate — the per cent of rider fares net of driver pay captured by the company — from about 32% at the start of upfront pricing to upwards of 42% by the end of 2024”. Last week's University of Oxford research found that, since the launch of dynamic pricing, Uber's median take rate per UK driver had “increased from 25% to 29%, and on some trips … is over 50%”. TELSA'S MISHAPS Telsa's robotaxis are off to a bumpy start. The Verge reported: Some are relatively minor, like failing to recognize a reversing UPS truck while trying to pull into a parking space or driving over a curb. Others are more worrisome, like briefly driving on the wrong side of the road or dropping passengers off in the middle of a busy intersection. Several incidents involve “phantom braking,” in which the vehicle stops suddenly for seemingly no reason. Tesla's camera-only perception system has long had problems with phantom braking, appearing to misinterpret shadows, road marking, or other environmental factors, which triggers the vehicle's automatic emergency braking. The Reddit list includes three incidents of phantom braking. But the above list suggests that not everyone's experience was so seamless. Also, the only way we know about any of these incidents is because robotaxi customers are documenting their rides and posting them on social media. Texas doesn't require any incident reporting or data sharing from Tesla — though the state did recently approve a new permitting system that could prove to be more difficult for the company to navigate. One provision allows state regulators to revoke permits if a company's autonomous vehicles are deemed a safety risk. Keep in mind, these are the incidents that cropped up among a small fleet of 10–20 vehicles in just three days of semi-public availability. Musk has said he wants thousands of vehicles on the road within months, and perhaps “a million” by the end of next year. Imagine what the list looks like at that point. UBER IN TALKS WITH TRAVIS KALANICK Photograph: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters Travis returns to Uber…sorta. NY Times reported: Uber is in talks with Travis Kalanick, the ride-hailing company's co-founder who was ousted in a boardroom coup eight years ago this month, to help fund his acquisition of the U.S. subsidiary of a Chinese autonomous vehicle company, two people with knowledge of the matter said. The company, Pony.ai, was founded in Silicon Valley in 2016 but has its main presence in China, and has permits to operate robot taxis and trucks in the United States and China. The talks are preliminary, said the people, who were not authorized to speak about the confidential conversations. Mr. Kalanick will run Pony if the deal is completed, they said. It is unclear what role, if any, Uber would take in Pony as an investor. If the deal goes through, Mr. Kalanick, 48, will remain in his day job running CloudKitchens, a virtual restaurant start-up that he founded after leaving Uber in 2017. He would also work more closely with Dara Khosrowshahi, who took over as Uber's chief executive after Mr. Kalanick's ouster.
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    20 mins
  • Uber Shuttle, Chicago Ordinance and Waymo Prices.

    Uber Shuttle, Chicago Ordinance and Waymo Prices.
    Jun 13 2025
    Uber makes a bus, a new ordinance in Chicago and Waymos costs more. LegalRideshare breaks it down. UBER SHUTTLE…IS A BUS Uber invented a bus. Gizmodo reported: The ride-hailing company recently announced Route Share, in which shuttles will travel dozens of fixed routes, with fixed stops, picking up passengers and dropping them off at fixed times. Amid the inevitable jokes about Silicon Valley once again discovering buses are serious questions about what this will mean for struggling transit systems, air quality, and congestion. But Kevin Shen, who studies this sort of thing at the Union of Concerned Scientists, questions whether Uber's “next-gen bus” will do much for commuters or the climate. “Everybody will say, ‘Silicon Valley's reinventing the bus again,'” Shen said. “But it's more like they're reinventing a worse bus.” Meanwhile, the federal government is cutting support for public services, including transit systems — many of which still haven't fully recovered from COVID-era budget crunches. Though ridership nationwide is up to 85 percent of pre-pandemic levels, Bloomberg News recently estimated that transit systems across the country face a $6 billion budget shortfall. So it's easy to see why companies like Uber see a business opportunity in public transit. New Chicago Ordinance A new Chicago ordinance is up for debate. Chicago Tribune reported: Rodriguez's ordinance would raise driver pay during rides to $1.50 per mile and 62.5 cents per minute in July 2026. It would also establish a $7 minimum driver payout for each trip. The City Council's Workforce Development Committee, chaired by Rodriguez, is set to discuss and vote on the measure Thursday. If it passes, it could face a final vote from all aldermen next week. In addition to pay raises, Rodriguez's ordinance would require fare breakdowns be shared with both riders and drivers. It would also add driver safety measures — like requiring passenger identities to be verified — and would reconfigure the driver disciplinary process by giving drivers a seven-day notice ahead of suspensions and details explaining why they have been deactivated. Both Uber and Lyft blasted the potential forced pay hike Monday. Lyft spokesperson CJ Macklin likened the ordinance to laws in New York City that have “forced thousands of drivers out of the app for hours at a time.” WAYMOS ARE EXPENSIVE Waymos cost more than Uber or Lyft and riders are fine with it. TechCrunch reported: Obi, an app that aggregates real-time pricing and pick-up times across multiple ride-hailing services, has just published what it's calling the “first in-depth examination of Waymo's pricing strategy.” The company found Waymo's self-driving car rides to be consistently more expensive than comparative offerings from Uber and Lyft — and it doesn't seem to matter. The report, shared exclusively with TechCrunch, is based on a month's worth of data collected between March 25 and April 25 in San Francisco, California. Obi pulled nearly 90,000 “offer records” from Waymo, Lyft's “standard” offering, and UberX in order to compare price and ETA. It then compared ride requests from the same times and routes. Obi found Lyft offered the lowest average price at $14.44. Uber was next at $15.58. Waymo's average price across the month's worth of data was $20.43. The company found that 70% of users who had taken a Waymo ride said they preferred a driverless car to a traditional rideshare or taxi. Despite that enthusiasm, Obi found that safety is still a big concern for riders. Of those surveyed, 74% said safety is their biggest concern about robotaxis. Nearly 70% of respondents said they think there should be some form of remote human monitoring of the rides (something that is already a common practice). LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, robotaxis, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    21 mins
  • Shared Rides, Tesla Rental, and Rideshare Fees.

    Shared Rides, Tesla Rental, and Rideshare Fees.
    May 23 2025
    Lyft gets cheaper, Tesla goes rental and Chicago cracks down. LegalRideshare breaks it down. LYFT SHARED RIDES Lyft is bringing back shared rides. Bloomberg reported: Lyft Inc. is bringing back cheaper shared trips at airports, reversing a decision made two years ago to discontinue the ride option as it seeks to compete with rival Uber Technologies Inc. in courting inflation-weary consumers. Lyft is currently piloting shared rides at eight US airports, including Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco, with those trips receiving as much as a 20% discount compared with a regular Lyft, said company spokesperson Jill Gonzalez, confirming an inquiry from Bloomberg News. Two passengers at those airports going in a similar direction can be picked up in the same car, according to a screenshot posted by a driver on the social media site X. Lyft and Uber have been introducing affordability-focused product updates to respond to worsening consumer sentiment, which has soured on concerns about the broader economy. A Gridwise report in February showed that a majority of customers would curb or cut out ride-hails if Uber and Lyft prices in the US increased further beyond a 7.2% jump in 2024. RENT-A-TESLA Elon Musk says there's no need to buy Uber. Business Insider reported: Musk told CNBC that he envisions a world where, instead of calling an Uber, you can call an autonomous Tesla to get you to your destination without a dedicated driver. Musk's proposed business model would allow Tesla drivers to rent out their cars for autonomous ride-hailing, “just like” one can rent out a spare bedroom through Airbnb. Representatives for Tesla and Uber did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider. Tesla has not yet unveiled the commercial version of its Full Self-Driving software, called FSD Unsupervised. This software will be used in its robotaxi fleet and does not require a driver behind the wheel like its personal vehicles. When asked by Faber whether Tesla needed to make any improvements or changes to its technology or fleet in order to prepare to launch a large-scale robotaxi service, Musk demurred. “I don't think we're missing anything,” Musk said. “Tesla has all the ingredients necessary to offer a vast self-driving fleet.” CHICAGO COMBATS OVERCHARGING Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago After the ongoing issue with Uber's congestion fees, the city and organizations are fighting back. Block Club Chicago reported: Backlash to Uber overcharging customers a city congestion fee has revived local and state efforts to regulate the rideshare industry. A state bill requiring companies to provide an itemized list of fees before a purchase — or include it in the total advertised price — sailed through the Senate and a key House of Representatives committee Tuesday. And on Wednesday, a City Council member pledged to hold a hearing into Uber's overcharging of the city's Downtown congestion fee — while rideshare drivers rallied for more workplace protections. The state bill stalled previously as lawsuits with food delivery apps were settled over hidden fees. But Block Club's reporting on Uber wrongfully charging the city's $1.50 per ride Downtown “congestion” surcharge outside of permitted hours has convinced more lawmakers to support the bill this time around, said Rep. Bob Morgan, its chief sponsor in the House. It is now heading to a full floor vote in the House. Uber admitted in April it had errantly applied the congestion surcharge on rides to and from Downtown taken outside the city-permitted surcharge hours of 6 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. Uber began refunding customers earlier this month, but the company still won't say how much is owed to Chicagoans in total. LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, robotaxis, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    16 mins
  • Recalls, GigU and Tesla Robotaxis

    Recalls, GigU and Tesla Robotaxis
    May 16 2025
    Waymo recalls cars, GigU comes to America and Tesla falls behind. LegalRideshare breaks it down. WAYMO RECALLS 1200 VEHICLES Waymo recalls more than 1200 vehicles after minor collisions. Reuters reported: Waymo is recalling more than 1,200 self-driving vehicles to update software and address risks of collisions with chains, gates and other roadway barriers after U.S. auto safety investigators opened a probe last year. The recall affects 1,212 Waymo vehicles operating on the company's fifth-generation automated driving system software, the company said. Waymo said it was aware of 16 collisions with chains, gates and other barriers between 2022 and late 2024. But the incidents did not result in any injuries, according to a report filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. NHTSA opened an investigation into the performance of Waymo self-driving vehicles in May 2024 after reports of its robotaxis exhibiting driving behavior that potentially violated traffic safety laws. The agency said several incidents under investigation “involved collisions with clearly visible objects that a competent driver would be expected to avoid.” The investigation remains open. GIGU COMES TO AMERICA GigU, an app to help drivers make more money comes to America. Business Insider reported: An app launching in the US on Wednesday has drawn ire from Uber in the past after helping gig workers answer a key question: Which rides and deliveries make the most financial sense to take? GigU uses information that independent contractors see on-screen when they are offered a gig to calculate an estimate of how much the worker will earn per mile and at an hourly rate. The feature, which GigU calls the “cherry picker,” is designed to help drivers and delivery workers accept or reject a job within the seconds-long window that most apps give them, its founders say. The app works with only Android phones for now. In GigU, users can set specific ranges for pay and, for ride-hailing gigs, passenger ratings. Based on those settings, GigU assigns a color to orders or rides as they pop up on screen: Green for a job that would be the most lucrative for the driver, yellow for options with earnings that mostly fall between the ranges that users set, and red for a job that doesn't meet their goals. An Uber spokesperson said that “using automation tools, apps, or bots to manipulate the Uber app or access Uber data in any way isn't allowed” per its community guidelines and terms of service. Uber is still “engaged on the legal front in Brazil” with GigU and StopClub, the spokesperson added. GigU's founders say that their app merely takes information that the gig worker already sees and presents it in a more analytical context. From there, it's up to the gig worker to make a choice, they said. TESLA'S ROBOTAXI SERVICE FALLS BEHIND Tesla's robotaxi service is falling behind. Futurism reported: As The Information reports, the company is already woefully behind schedule and hasn't even started testing its autonomous vehicles without a safety driver as of April. And the company is quickly running out of time. Musk promised that Tesla would launch an autonomous ride-hailing service in Austin in a matter of weeks — a characteristically overly ambitious promise. The Texas Department of Public Safety hasn't even received a plan for what would happen in case of an emergency from Tesla. As The Information points out, it took Waymo a decade to complete detailed maps of each city to allow its fleet of fully autonomous vehicles to roam the streets safely. It took months of having a human safety driver behind the wheel before its operation could go fully driverless. Tesla has chosen a completely different approach, relying on its loyal customers to accumulate driving data. A Tesla engineer told The Information that the carmaker is struggling with “mundane operational problems,” like getting cars unstuck and providing customer service. Experts have also raised safety concerns about Tesla's decision to exclusively rely on cameras, unlike its competitors, like Waymo, which rely on more precise sensors, like radar and LIDAR. LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, robotaxis, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    19 mins
  • Uber Investigations, 99% Robotaxis and Tesla Trademarks.

    Uber Investigations, 99% Robotaxis and Tesla Trademarks.
    May 9 2025
    Chicago investigates Uber, bots versus humans and Tesla hits a roadblock. LegalRideshare breaks it down CHICAGO INVESTIGATES UBER Chicago is investigating Uber. Block Club Chicago reported: The city has opened an investigation into Uber after Block Club Chicago reported the company overcharged riders the city's congestion surcharge for months. The city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection received a complaint for “ride-hail overcharges” in early April and have now opened an investigation, a department spokesperson said. The spokesperson did not provide further details. An Uber spokesperson said the “internal error” started in January after the city expanded the congestion surcharge to include weekends as a budget-balancing measure. Uber has paid the city the total sum of the surcharges, the spokesperson said. But Uber has yet to answer Block Club's follow-up questions about how the refunds will be sent or how much, in total, was wrongly taken from customers. Downtown Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) said he's heard from constituents who were overcharged for Uber rides, which they realized after checking receipts following Block Club's report Wednesday. “This didn't just happen. How it continued unabated for a length of time is the point of this investigation,” Hopkins said. “The level of oversight rideshare companies operate under, it's just a shadow of what still exists for the taxi industry. That is a tragic government failure, and this is one symptom of that problem.” ROBOTAXIS ARE 99% BUSIER THAN DRIVERS Robotaxis are outpacing human drivers. Business Insider reported: Uber passengers in Austin seemingly can't get enough of Waymo's robotaxis, with the 100 or so Waymo vehicles operating on the Uber app already busier than the human drivers they share the road with. “These approximately 100 vehicles are now busier than over 99% of all drivers in Austin in terms of completed trips per day,” CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in prepared remarks after Uber announced its first-quarter earnings on Wednesday. Khosrowshahi said the two companies plan to scale their autonomous fleet in Austin to “hundreds” of Waymos in the coming months, ahead of the launch of Waymo's robotaxis on the Uber app in Atlanta later this year. Thanks to its hands-off regulations, Austin has become a hotspot for autonomous vehicles. In March, Uber began offering Waymo vehicles exclusively on its app for the first time in the city. TESLA'S TRADEMARKS GET STOPPED Tesla's trademarks hit a road block. TechCrunch reported: Tesla's attempt to trademark the term “Robotaxi” in reference to its vehicles has been refused by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for being too generic, according to a new filing. Another application by Tesla to trademark the term “Robotaxi” for its upcoming ride-hailing service is still under examination by the office. In addition, applications from Tesla for the trademark on the term “Cybercab” have been halted due to other companies pursuing similar “Cyber” trademarks. That includes one company that has applied for numerous trademarks related to aftermarket Cybertruck accessories. Tesla will be allowed to submit evidence and arguments to support its argument in favor of the trademark. If it does, the USPTO wants Tesla to provide “[f]act sheets, instruction manuals, brochures, advertisements and pertinent screenshots of applicant's website as it relates to the goods and/or services in the application, including any materials using the terms in the applied-for mark.” In other words, Tesla needs to give the agency specific plans for how and why it deserves the “Robotaxi” trademark. LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    14 mins
  • Taxis, Recession and Congestion

    Taxis, Recession and Congestion
    May 2 2025

    Lyft gets taxis, a recession makes Uber cheaper and riders get overcharged. LegalRideshare breaks it down.

    LYFT GETS TAXIS

    Lyft will start dispatching taxis. Bloomberg reported:

    Lyft Inc. will begin dispatching standard taxis to some US riders starting next month in a first as it expands its features to compete with much-larger rival Uber Technologies Inc.

    The rollout will begin in St. Louis on May 5 for riders who have opted in to taxis as an alternative to gig drivers in rideshare vehicles. Such users may be picked up in a cab when they request Lyft Standard, “Wait & Save” or priority pickup rides, the company confirmed to Bloomberg News.

    The upcoming feature was discovered within code found inside of Lyft's mobile app. The code indicates opted-in users will be matched with a licensed taxi when the pickup is faster. Like with a regular rideshare trip, users will be able to pay, tip and submit a rating within the Lyft app.

    RECESSION MAKES UBER CHEAPER

    A recession could make your ride cheaper. Business Insider reported:

    If the economy enters a recession, more people could sign up to drive and deliver for Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi said on Friday.

    “If there is more unemployment, the cost of Uber will come down, because, to some extent, the cost of labor comes down,” Khosrowshahi said at the Semafor World Economy Summit in Washington, D.C.

    Khosrowshahi said that Uber tends to be “recession-resistant” since many people still want groceries, restaurant delivery, rides around town, and other “everyday use cases” — even if they cut back spending in other areas.

    “You may put off going on vacation in Europe this summer, but you're still going to treat your family to a nice dinner,” he said. “We specialize in small treats, not big treats."

    UBER OVERCHARGED RIDERS

    Uber overcharged riders. Block Club Chicago reported:

    New rules went into affect Jan. 6 that allowed rideshare companies to charge a $1.50 congestion surcharge for all rides to and from Downtown 6 a.m.-10 p.m. daily, with the revenue benefitting the city. But customers since then have noticed they've been charged the fee outside those hours.

    After Block Club Chicago reached out to Uber about the discrepancy, the company is now promising refunds.

    Marty Regan was one of the customers overcharged. When he checked his Uber receipt after a recent late-night ride home in the West Loop, he caught the $1.50 congestion surcharge tagged on his fare even though it was after hours.

    “You can't look at all the taxes and fees when you book a ride,” Regan said. “It's a money grab at worst.”

    Uber is now “actively identifying all affected customers and will issue refunds accordingly,” spokesperson Josh Gold said. The surcharge fees, including the overcharges, were collected by Uber and paid to the city in accordance with rideshare regulations, Gold said.

    LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    17 mins
  • Subscriptions, Colorado and Volkswagen

    Subscriptions, Colorado and Volkswagen
    Apr 25 2025
    Uber sued by the FTC, Uber threatens to leave and VW goes AV. LegalRideshare breaks it down. UBER SUED BY FTC Uber is being sued by the FTC. Bloomberg reported: Uber Technologies Inc. was sued by the US Federal Trade Commission, which claims the rideshare and delivery company hurt consumers through “deceptive billing and cancellation practices” as part of its flagship subscription service. In a complaint filed Monday, the FTC alleges the company charged consumers for its Uber One product without their consent, misled users about the program's savings and made it “unreasonably” burdensome to cancel the service. The agency found users can be required to navigate as many as 23 screens and take up to 32 actions to cancel, according to an FTC statement. The company denied the FTC's claims, saying the company doesn't sign up or charge consumers without their consent, and that cancellations now take most people 20 seconds or less. “We are disappointed that the FTC chose to move forward with this action, but are confident that the courts will agree with what we already know: Uber One's sign-up and cancellation processes are clear, simple, and follow the letter and spirit of the law,” a spokesman said. UBER THREATENS TO LEAVE COLORADO Uber is threatening to leave Colorado. Axios reported: A bill moving through Colorado's legislature could force major changes to how rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft operate — and Uber says if it passes, it may have to shut down service in the state. House Bill 1291 would require stricter safety measures for rideshare drivers, including mandatory dash cameras, audio recordings of rides, and a ban on driving after using marijuana. The proposal also includes increased driver accountability standards. Uber officials say they support improved safety but argue that the bill, as written, is impossible to enforce. Blinick also raised concerns about legal liability, saying the bill could make the company responsible for even minor driver actions, such as offering a passenger a water bottle. Legal experts say Uber's concerns center on potential lawsuits. Riders themselves are split on the proposal — some say additional safety measures would provide peace of mind, while others worry about losing convenient transportation options. UBER & VOLKSWAGEN PARTNER TO DEPLOY AVS Credit: Volkswagen Uber and Volkswagen are partnering up to deploy AVs. Bloomberg reported: Uber Technologies Inc. and Volkswagen AG have partnered to deploy thousands of electric ID Buzz vans in the US, marking the latest partnership to expand autonomous options on the ride hailing app. The companies will begin testing the vans on roads later this year and plan a commercial launch next year in Los Angeles, they said in a statement on Thursday. During initial testing, a human operator will be inside of the vehicles. The launch will take place in stages and only proceed following necessary regulatory approvals. The partnership is planned to expand to other major US markets over the next decade. Volkswagen has been testing its ID Buzz vans with human operators in Austin. Those vehicles are outfitted with autonomous driving software made by Intel Corp. spinoff Mobileye Global Inc. For deployment of the vehicles on the Uber platform, Volkswagen is using a system developed by its MOIA brand. LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    17 mins
  • Denmark, Tesla, and Black-Market

    Denmark, Tesla, and Black-Market
    Apr 18 2025
    US students detained, a losing bet and black-market accounts. LegalRideshare breaks it down. US STUDENTS DETAINED IN DENMARK Two US students are being held in Denmark. CNN reported: Two US college students were arrested and detained for two weeks in Denmark after an alleged altercation with an Uber driver, local police said Tuesday. The alleged incident took place around 2 a.m. on March 31 (8 p.m. ET on March 30) after Owen Ray and a friend were returning from a night out in the Danish capital at the end of a spring break in Europe. Ray and his friend, who has not been named, had ordered an Uber to return to their hotel but realized they had selected the wrong destination, according to family spokesperson Erin Pelton. Unable to update the location in the Uber app, they canceled the ride. The canceled fare was automatically paid via the app, said Pelton. The driver, however, did not believe he had been paid and allegedly began threatening the students. Speaking to ABC's “Good Morning America,” Ray said that the driver got out of the car and started yelling that he hadn't been paid, threatening to “call 10 guys.” Ray added, “We did nothing wrong — we were the victims of an attack.” The incident was captured on the Uber driver's dash cam, which is now part of the court case in Denmark, Pelton told CNN. Copenhagen police told CNN that the students were brought before a court on the same day, facing charges of common assault. Uber told CNN that the driver reported that the two students started fighting in the back of the car and later assaulted him after the trip had ended. The driver subsequently called the authorities. A company spokesperson said in a statement, “The safety of everyone who uses the Uber app is a top priority, and we take reports of violence very seriously.” CYBERCAB: TESLA'S LOSING BET Tesla's cybercab looks like a losing bet. Electrek reported: According to a credible new report, Elon Musk has reportedly shut down an internal analysis from Tesla executives that showed the company's Robotaxi plans would lose money and that it should focus on its more affordable ‘Model 2'. The executives pointed to an internal report that didn't paint a good picture of Tesla's Robotaxi plan. The report has credibility as Patel commented on it. Musk dismissed the analysis, greenlighted the Cybercab, and killed the $25,000 driveable Tesla vehicle in favor of the Model Y-based cheaper vehicle with fewer features. After accounting for competition, Tesla figured it would be hard for robotaxis to replace the ~600,000 vehicles it sells in the US annually. Furthermore, Tesla's internal analysis pointed toward difficulties expanding into other markets, which could limit the scale and profitability of the robotaxi program. Ultimately, it predicted that it could lose money for years. BLACK-MARKET UBER ACCOUNTS Drivers are buying black market accounts on Facebook. Fortune reported: A new report from the Tech Transparency Project (TTP) is raising new safety concerns about Facebook, accusing the social-media company of hosting several “black market” pages where people can buy or rent driver accounts for a number of consumer-facing companies. As many as 800,000 Facebook users belong to 80 groups the TTP identified that let users trade driver accounts for Uber, DoorDash, and other ride-share and delivery companies. That lets people acquire the accounts without going through the screening process drivers are normally subjected to. And it raises both safety concerns for customers and fears of possible identity theft for riders or people who place orders. “Renting” an Uber Eats account, according to a Jan. 3, 2025 post, went for as little as $65. Most people listing accounts asked prospective renters or buyers to contact them directly, to keep the dealings out of public view. TTP said the existence of these groups indicated content moderation on Facebook was not being properly enforced, as many of the accounts had obvious names such as “Doordash & Uber Account For Rent And Sell Group.” (Facebook denied the issue had anything to do with the enforcement changes it announced in January.) LegalRideshare is the first law firm in the United States to focus exclusively on Uber®, Lyft®, gig workers, delivery and e-scooter accidents and injuries. Consultations are always free.
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    22 mins