Uber to pilot 'Uber Tasks' service to hire out assistants for household work

Uber has been experimenting with a lot of new features lately. With a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), the ride-hailing platform launched an AI chatbot for Uber Eats in August that provides users with recommendations. Uber is also reportedly set to get a new section featuring promotions, as well as allowing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients to use their waivers to buy groceries. All these features are aimed at enhancing the user experience amidst competition from rivals such as DoorDash. Now, Uber is set to take steps in a new direction by allowing users to hire personal assistants. Here’s all we know about it.

Uber Tasks

According to a Bloomberg report, Uber is reportedly set to experiment with a new service that will allow users to hire assistants to carry out various household tasks, in a bid to grow its business from just food deliveries and ride-hailing services. This mini-pilot program, dubbed “Uber Tasks”, will permit drivers and delivery personnel to accept “small home projects” such as furniture assembly, lawn mowing, and more, from customers. This service is reportedly optional, and drivers can choose to opt-in or out, as per their preferences.

Other household chores could include snow removal, packing and unpacking, lawn maintenance, decorating for holidays, and more.

An Uber spokesperson told Bloomberg, “This small pilot is the newest way for drivers and couriers to put their skills to work and earn on their own schedule. We're always thinking about how to bring people more ways to earn with Uber.”

The Uber Tasks pilot program will kick off in Fort Myers, Florida, and in Edmonton, Alberta, in the coming weeks, the company has announced. This move is aimed at increasing profit after the company reported the slowest revenue growth in 10 quarters despite an 11 percent increase in sales from the last quarter. Uber revealed these results in the third-quarter report last week. 

If successful, this new service by Uber could rival TaskRabbit, a marketplace that matches freelance labour to fulfill local demand and carry out tasks such as cleaning, moving, furniture assembly, laundry, and more.