Uber faces Rs 9,000 crore fine for using AI to suspend drivers

Uber is facing a fine of around Rs 9,000 crore in Europe over automated decisions that allegedly suspended or deactivated cab drivers without enough human oversight. Here's the full story. Uber faces a Rs 9,000 crore fine in Europe. (Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic) Should an AI system get to decide whether you can keep your job or not? Well, the topic is currently hogging the limelight as a massive legal fight is underway in Europe involving the popular riding app, Uber. The Dutch Data Protection Authority has fined the company €825 million ( around $966 million or Rs 9,244.67 crore), over the way it used automated systems to suspend or deactivate drivers.Notably, the penalty is the second-largest fine issued under Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) so far, according to Reuters. The Dutch regulator says Uber deactivated some driver accounts without adequately informing them or giving them meaningful human oversight before making decisions that could effectively cut off their income. It also said some drivers were permanently deactivated through computer-driven decisions, including those linked to low customer ratings.“A computer should not make decisions on its own that have [such] major consequences,” said Monique Verdier, deputy chair of the Dutch Data Protection Authority.Uber disputes the findings and says it has never permanently deactivated drivers solely through an automated system. The company said most suspensions are temporary, permanent deactivations involve human review, and drivers can challenge such decisions. Uber plans to appeal the fine. How the case beganThe case began with complaints from Uber drivers in France. Brahim Ben Ali, a former Uber driver, said in a Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant, that his account was deactivated in 2019. He later collected testimonies from around 170 other drivers and took the complaint to the Netherlands, where Uber has its European headquarters.The drivers were assisted by PersonalData.io, a Swiss digital-rights organisation that helped them obtain information about how Uber’s systems made decisions about their accounts. This case is just the latest in a string of hefty fines European regulators have slapped on major US tech companies over privacy, competition, and digital-market rules.In the past few years, Meta, Google, Apple, and Amazon have all been hit with major penalties in Europe. But these fines rarely stick at their original size, companies typically appeal for years, and the amounts often get reduced or thrown out entirely. The fines have also become a bit of a sore spot between the EU and the US, with American officials frequently accusing Europe of unfairly targeting US tech companies.The latest Uber automation case raises a broader question: how much power should companies give algorithms when automated decisions can affect people’s jobs and income?Under GDPR rules, companies cannot rely solely on automated decision-making when it has a significant impact on a person. Such decisions require meaningful human review and a way for people to challenge them.- EndsPublished On: Aug 24, 2026 12:24 IST