Uber

Man Robs Store, Uses Uber for Getaway Car

A 23-year-old man in Parkville, Maryland recently robbed a store at gunpoint. But police quickly tracked him down and arrested him along with his getaway driver. But they let his driver go. Why? The poor guy was just an Uber driver. That’s right, Dashawn Terrell Cochran is the suspect in a bizarre robbery that took…

Report: Uber Thinks Lyft’s CTO Helped Hack Its Driver Database 

Uber still doesn’t know who hacked iteight months ago, exposing the personal data of 50,000 drivers. But the hunt is increasing tension between rival ride-hailing apps. According to a Reuters report, Uber is closing in on Lyft CTO Chris Lambert as a possible accomplice to its hacker. Sources told Reuters that a suspicious Comcast IP…

The “Taxi of Tomorrow” Is Finally the Official Cab for New York City

Against all odds, the Nissan NV-200 will rule the streets of New York. As of today, the vast majority of cab drivers must buy the so-called Taxi of Tomorrow when they retire their old yellow cabs. Anybody who’s ever taken a cab in the city will agree that new cars are a good thing. This…

Uber Just Hired the Car Hackers That Stopped Chrysler In Its Tracks

Uber has hired the hackers behind one of the most terriyfing hacks in recent memory. You’ll remember Charlie Miller and Chris Valasek as the security researchers who last month demonstrated their ability to stop Chrysler vehicles in their tracks remotely by hacking their internet connected powers. As we shared at the time, the hack affected…

Uber Can Actually Make It Easier For People To Ride Public Transit

Uber’s destruction of the taxi industry is obvious—and NYC cabs are finally fighting back. But how much of a threat is Uber to other modes of transportation? Earlier this week I worried that Uber’s plan to more easily scoop people off city streets might take ridership away from public transit. But a FiveThirtyEight investigation claims…

The NYC Taxi Industry Finally Has an App, Only Four Years Too Late

Uber-haters of New York, rejoice! The city’s yellow and green cabs finally got their shit together and launched an app that lets you hail and pay for taxi rides, just like Uber. Except there’s one big bonus: no surge pricing or harassment from a terrible CEO. The new app is called Arro, and it looks…

If You Want Better Public Transit, You Probably Shouldn’t Use Uber

I’m writing this from a train. Without access to a car, I had to make a plan this morning for how to get to an interview: rent a car, ride a bike, take a train and a bus, use an on-demand ride service. I chose the train for a few reasons. But mostly because I…

Stephen Colbert Will Host Elon Musk and Uber’s CEO His First Week

When Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show launches on September 8 there will be a few surprising guests on his couch: Both Elon Musk and Uber CEO Travis Kalanick are booked for a very tech-focused first week. But that’s not the only hint that Colbert’s show might promise to be the most nerd-friendly late night show…

Study Suggests Uber Reduces DUI Deaths

You can have your own argument about Uber’s value as an industry-changing technology (just please don’t torch anyone’s car in the process). But one recent study looked at a particular effect of Uber: namely, when it started in California, did it reduce drinking and driving deaths? The research was conducted by professors from Philidelphia’s Temple…

Uber Is Recruiting Bored Old People as Drivers 

First Uber came for the taxi industry. Now, for our grandmas. Uber is partnering with “Life Reimagined,” a non-profit wing of the AARP, to lure our nation’s most aged citizens into becoming chauffeurs. Apparently, the manifestation of late capitalism in app form is not contented with its current cache of drivers and is thirsty for…

This Video of Protestors Trashing Uber Cars Makes Me Feel Bad for Uber 

I don’t like Uber. It’s an apparently evil company that overcharges people and eschews accountability as often as possible. However, seeing an angry mob of cabbies descend upon and destroy a number of Uber cars in Mexico City actually made me feel bad for Uber drivers. At this point it’s a common tale. Taxi cab…

The Little-Known Robot Taxi That Could Outrun Google and Uber

By 2020, visitors landing in Tokyo for the Summer Olympics could be greeted by a fleet of self-driving taxis. At least, that’s the dream of Japanese tech company DeNA, which hopes to have autonomous cars shuttling tourists around the crowded, maze-like streets of that megacity within five years. You probably haven’t heard of DeNA. But…

Uber Is Faking Us Out With “Ghost Cabs” on Its Passenger Map

If you use Uber, you’ve seen the map that comes up when you want a ride. The map shows little car graphics hovering adorably around your location and the wait time for a pickup. Once you request a ride, you can watch a little car creep closer to your destination as you wait. It’s a…

Xiaomi’s Going to Start Uber-ing Smartphones to People

In another piece of evidence for the overwhelming argument for me to never leave my couch, Xiaomi announced that it’s going to partner up with Uber to hand-deliver smartphones. Yep, this couch is real comfortable. One full day before the Xiaomi Mi Note is available online (July 27), you’ll be able to tap a “Xiaomi”…

NYC Backs Down On Plans to Curb Uber’s Explosive Growth

New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio and Uber have cut a last minute deal that will prevent the “Uber Cap” legislation, which would have limited the number of cars the company could keep on the street, says the New York Times. According to the report: Under the agreement, according to three people familiar with…

Uber Zings NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio With Sick In-App Burn

Uber’s famous for using aggressive tactics. Its latest stunt is aimed directly at New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio. The company added a tab to the app to illustrating what would happen if the mayor’s new “Uber cap” bill passes. When you fire up the app, the new “De Blasio” tab is along the…

Uber has settled a lawsuit with the family of a 6-year-old killed by an UberX driver. Sofia Liu was hit on a San Francisco cross-walk on New Year’s Eve 2013; the driver had the Uber app running on his phone at the time. The terms of the settlement are under wraps, but given Uber’s billion-dollar…

Uber’s Suspending Its UberPop Operations in France (Updated)

Following protests and police raids, Uber has announced that it’s shutting down operations of UberPop in France as of 8pm local time this evening. Update: Note that Uber is only shutting down operation of UberPop—not all of its operations. Uber has been operating a low-cost service called UberPop in Paris. French authorities passed a new…

UberBoat Quietly Launches in Istanbul

While Parisian cab drivers took to the streets to pillage and burn Uber vehicles last Thursday, the ever-contentious ridesharing company was quietly rolling out UberBoat across the continent in Istanbul. Yep, you heard that right. In Istanbul you can now tap a button on your phone and summon a speed boat to ferry you across…

Are There Any Sites or Apps You Refuse To Use on Principle?

Many people avoid using the ride-sharing service Uber because of the company’s questionable policies, which can lead to events like multiple lawsuits, violent protests and attacks on cars carrying Courtney Love. What service do you stay away from on moral grounds? https://gizmodo.com/paris-taxi-drivers-burn-cars-in-violent-anti-uber-riot-1713865212 I recall proudly talking up my Android phone and Windows laptop, back in…