Lyft’s AI ‘Earnings Assistant’ offers ideas about how drivers can make more money

Lyft has launched “Earnings Assistant,” an AI chatbot tool for drivers seeking to “optimize their time on the road.” With it, drivers can create plans based on information about things like airport arrivals or local events, announced Jeremy Bird, EVP of driver experience at Lyft in an email to The Verge.

The Earnings Assistant feature is in early access, and drivers will need to join a waitlist to use it. Once they have access and start planning with the tool, it can offer reminders, and drivers can also ask it for recommendations if they aren’t sure where to go next.

In Lyft’s hypothetical example, the driver asks for a plan that stays within a five-hour period in San Francisco and ends at an address in Oakland. It then creates a time-blocked visual that shows where they’re going to be and includes a mention of when the driver can expect a “Turbo” time, when earnings are higher.

Lyft says this builds on other recent roll-outs like tweaked Lyft Rewards, and a “Driver Accomplishment Letter” feature, another AI-powered tool that creates a “personalized document” summarizing their work for Lyft, complete with positive feedback from passengers.