Uber Faces Legal Action Over AI-Driven Pay System Reducing Driver Incomes
Worker Info Exchange, a non-profit foundation, sent Uber a letter before action on November 19, 2025, alleging that the company breached European data protection law by using an AI-driven dynamic pricing algorithm to set driver pay rates. Research from Oxford University found that Uber drivers earned substantially less per hour after the algorithm was introduced in 2023, while the company took a higher share of fares.
What happened
Worker Info Exchange (WIE), a non-profit foundation, sent Uber a letter before action on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, alleging that the ride-hailing app breached European data protection law by varying driver pay rates through its controversial algorithm.
The proposed legal case is expected to be filed in Amsterdam, where Uber is based in Europe. The case follows research published by WIE and Oxford University in the summer finding that many Uber drivers were earning substantially less per hour since Uber introduced a dynamic pricing algorithm in 2023, while the company was taking a significantly higher share of fares.
Reported impact
Oxford University research found that average pay per hour on the app is stagnant and lower in real terms in the year following the introduction of dynamic pricing. James Farrar, the director of WIE, stated that Uber has damaged the livelihoods of thousands of drivers through deeply intrusive and exploitative pay-setting systems.
Index analysis
WIE argued that Uber trained its algorithms by using drivers' own historic personal data by observing their working practices. Under the GDPR, the organization contended that drivers are entitled to demand that Uber stop using this technology, revert to the previous method of transparent pay-setting with a human in the loop, and compensate drivers for their losses.
Governance controls
An Uber spokesperson responded that drivers choose Uber because the platform offers flexibility over where and when they work, and transparency over every trip they take, including the fare, destination, and their own earnings before they decide whether to accept. Uber said the study WIE collaborated on is not accurate and relies on incomplete and selective data.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.