Uber has told some of its gig workers focused on AI training that it no longer needs them two months before their stint was supposed to end, Business Insider has learned.
The workers are part of Project Sandbox, Uber’s name for the AI training work it carries out for Google. The project represents an early effort by Uber to develop AI tools for other companies under its AI Solutions division.
About a dozen contractors were involved in the project, two workers told Business Insider, though it wasn’t immediately clear how many were cut.
“The client has recently communicated a change in their internal priorities, which directly affects ongoing work on this program,” Uber emailed the affected contractors on Monday.
It added that Uber is “committed to keeping you in our network and will reach out with any upcoming opportunities where your profile is a strong fit.”
Three workers who spoke to Business Insider for this story had advanced degrees, such as PhDs, or work experience that could be relevant to AI training. They said they joined Project Sandbox earlier this fall after Uber told them that they could expect at least three months of work.
An Uber spokesperson declined to comment.
Uber has spent years building its ride-hailing and delivery businesses, both of which posted double-digit percentage increases in gross bookings for the third quarter of this year. Uber’s stock is up about 39% so far in 2025.
The company’s AI-training arm, meanwhile, appears to be just getting started.
Last month, the company said it would pilot its Digital Tasks program in the US, which allows gig workers, including those who already drive or deliver for Uber, to complete tasks that train AI.
Some of the work requires PhDs, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said during the company’s earnings call earlier this month. The gigs show that Uber is expanding beyond driving and delivery to become a broader “platform for work,” Khosrowshahi said.
One Project Sandbox worker who received Monday’s email told Business Insider that a staffing agency sent a cold email about the gig earlier this fall. After an assessment, they were cleared to join Sandbox for a minimum of three months, according to another email.
Once Uber onboarded them, each worker was put in contact with an employee at Google, which was Uber’s client for the AI training work. Google did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Tasks ranged from annotating photos and videos to evaluating whether an AI-generated answer to a prompt was accurate and complete, the workers said.
Pay varied. In one case, base pay was $55 an hour, rising to as much as $110 an hour, or around $19,000 a month, if the contractor worked 40 hours a week consistently for four weeks, according to a copy of the earnings structure seen by Business Insider.
Sometimes, the contractors were told to work fewer than 40 hours a week, making it impossible to receive the highest hourly rate, the three workers said.
Uber’s latest email told workers their assignment would conclude on Tuesday. Now, they’re waiting for instructions to return their company-provided laptop. They are still waiting for their first paycheck, which Uber told them could take up to seven weeks from their start date to arrive.
A worker who has done other tech gigs said that other companies he’s worked for have honored the length of their contracts.
Labeling data for AI has become a giant business, with hundreds of thousands of people worldwide doing the work. Some turn to training AI as a side-hustle while in college or raising kids, while others have made it their primary source of income, Business Insider reported in September.
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