Uberland: How Algorithms Are Rewriting the Rules of Work

Alex Rosenblat

Published by University of California Press 2018

Uberland

How Algorithms Are Rewriting the Rules of Work

Alex Rosenblat

https://doi.org/10.1525/9780520970632

Overview
Contents

About this book

Silicon Valley technology is transforming the way we work, and Uber is leading the charge. An American startup that promised to deliver entrepreneurship for the masses through its technology, Uber instead built a new template for employment using algorithms and Internet platforms. Upending our understanding of work in the digital age, Uberland paints a future where any of us might be managed by a faceless boss.

The neutral language of technology masks the powerful influence algorithms have across the New Economy. Uberland chronicles the stories of drivers in more than twenty-five cities in the United States and Canada over four years, shedding light on their working conditions and providing a window into how they feel behind the wheel. The book also explores Uber’s outsized influence around the world: the billion-dollar company is now influencing everything from debates about sexual harassment and transportation regulations to racial equality campaigns and labor rights initiatives.

Based on award-winning technology ethnographer Alex Rosenblat’s firsthand experience of riding over 5,000 miles with Uber drivers, daily visits to online forums, and face-to-face discussions with senior Uber employees, Uberland goes beyond the headlines to reveal the complicated politics of popular technologies that are manipulating both workers and consumers.

Author / Editor information

Rosenblat Alex :

Alex Rosenblat is a technology ethnographer. A researcher at the Data & Society Research Institute, she holds an MA in sociology from Queen’s University and a BA in history from McGill University. Rosenblat’s writing has appeared in media outlets such as the New York Times, Harvard Business Review, the Atlantic, Slate, and Fast Company. Her research has received attention worldwide and has been covered in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, MIT Technology Review, WIRED, New Scientist, and the Guardian. Many scholarly and professional publications have also published her prizewinning work, including the International Journal of Communication and the Columbia Law Review.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Acknowledgments Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Introduction: Using an App to Go to Work - Uber as a Symbol of the New Economy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
1. Driving as Glamorous Labor: How Uber Uses the Myths of the Sharing Economy Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	21
2. Motivations to Drive: How Uber’s System Rewards Full-Time and Recreational Drivers Differently Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	49
3. The Technology Pitch: How Uber Creates Entrepreneurship for the Masses Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	73
4. The Shady Middleman: How Uber Manages Money Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	107
5. Behind the Curtain: How Uber Manages Drivers with Algorithms Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	138
6. In the Big Leagues: How Uber Plays Ball Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	167
Conclusion: The New Age of Uber - How Technology Consumption Rewrote the Rules of Work Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	197
Appendix 1. Methodology: How I Studied Uber Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	209
Appendix 2. Ridehailing beyond Uber: Meet Lyft, the Younger Twin Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	217
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	221
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	261