Uber offers ‘digital jobs’ for idle drivers as a way to make extra money

Uber offers ‘digital tasks’ as a new way for drivers to generate additional income without having to deliver or make trips, Newsweek reports.

In a new pilot program, Uber is giving drivers and couriers in small towns in India the chance to complete “simple, quick tasks,” including uploading documents or responding to questions in their native language. CEO Dara Khosrowshahi unveiled the new program at the Only on Uber 2025 conference in Washington, DC. Supported by Chief Product Officer Sachin Kansal, the leadership team came up with the idea by listening to feedback from drivers who are eager to earn more even when they are not on the road. “Whether it’s digital jobs with document or audio uploads, or catering orders, we want to ensure you have as many earning opportunities as possible on our platform to suit your situation and your requirements,” said Kansal.

“We heard loud and clear from you that you want more ways to make money, and we are listening.”

The tasks come from a joint effort with AI companies, using drivers to train and refine AI models, in an effort to add to the data labeling platform, Uber AI Solutions. “Uber AI Solutions is testing a program in twelve cities in India allowing drivers to give a boost their income by completing digital tasks directly in the Uber app,” said Megha Yethadka, global head of Uber AI Solutions, according to Economic times.

“Until now, these tasks, such as labeling work, text classification, counting objects and digitizing receipts, have been performed in India and other countries by independent contractors outside the app.”

By definition, data labeling is a process of adding targeted tags or descriptions to raw data such as images, text, or audio. The data is used to train AI models so they can make accurate and realistic predictions. For example, the platform is used to identify a stop sign on the road or understand a customer request in the app. Other duties include sorting items priced over $50 on a store invoice shared with drivers.

The rollout of the digital tasks will begin in India with plans to expand to other distressed markets including the US “before the end of the year”. The company specified that the available tasks would only depend on “customer needs” for the time being. “Each task only takes a few minutes,” the company said in a statement.

“Over time, you will see a greater variety of tasks, which will give you more opportunities to make money.”

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