Uber will soon be able to figure out if a customer is drunk — even before they climb into one of their rides.
By monitoring how they use their phone, the angle it is being held, how the customer is walking — and especially if the ride is being ordered up from a bar at 2 a.m. — the ride-hailing company can figure out if a drunk customer is looking for a lift, the company said in a patent application.
The application, “Predicting user state using machine learning,” is how Uber detailed the promised technology. Drivers presumably will be fed this information while en route to the pickup.
It is not known if the info will be used to deter drivers from picking up such passengers in order to sidestep potential trouble. The filing with the US Patent and Trademark Office said technology may be used to match possibly intoxicated riders with drivers with training to deal with such circumstances.
The behavior of the person ordering the ride will be compared to their “normal” behavior — that is, it will be compared to long-term use patterns.