Uber to launch feature allowing women to select women drivers—but they don't know what a woman is

Uber announced the launch of a new service called "Women Preferences" that will allow women passengers to select women drivers, according to a press release issued on Wednesday. The new feature also extends to biological men who identify as transgender or nonbinary. 

A pilot program will begin in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit in the next few weeks. The new features, designed to give women riders a greater sense of security, come after several women filed lawsuits against Uber over allegations of sexual assault and harassment by male drivers, Forbes reported.

However, Uber said that the company "cannot guarantee that all users you are matched with while using this feature will be women, or appear in a way that would identify as a woman."

"Please be mindful that the Uber community is remarkably diverse, including people of all gender identities and expressions. Some women Users may not express their gender or appear in a way that matches your perception of 'femininity'" the rideshare company states. 

"At Uber, we believe that when we make our platform better for women, we make it better for everyone. Across the US, women riders and drivers have told us they want the option to be matched with other women on trips. We've heard them - and now we're introducing new ways to give them even more control over how they ride and drive," Uber said in a statement.

"For the first time in the US, we're launching Women Preferences - features designed to give women riders and drivers more choice, more confidence, and more flexibility when they use Uber," the company continued.

Here's how "Women Preferences" will work, according to Uber:





According to Uber, women drivers will also benefit from the new rollout, which will provide them with the option to request trips with women riders, "including during peak earning hours like evenings."

"This means more opportunities to earn on their terms with flexibility and confidence," said Uber. "Women drivers can simply toggle on the 'Women Rider Preference' in their app settings. If they want to receive trip requests from all riders, they can turn the preference off at any time."

Uber's Women Rider Preference was first launched in Saudi Arabia in 2019, following a landmark ruling allowing women to drive. The feature has since expanded to 40 countries, completing over 100 million trips, the company said.