09/23/2026
The Workers' Algorithm Observatory is a cross-institutional collective led by researchers at Princeton's Center for Information Technology Policy and Pennsylvania State University. They build tools to empower workers to investigate black-box algorithmic systems: https://wao.cs.princeton.edu
As part of a $131.5 mil settlement between DoorDash and the NYC government, the WAO will develop software that allows DoorDash workers to share their earnings data with the NYC Dept of Consumer and Worker Protection.
https://www.nyc.gov/site/dca/news/065-26/mayor-mamdani-wins-record-131-5-million-doordash-delivery-workers
The WAO researches and audits work algorithms to empower workers. Companies increasingly rely on opaque, black-box algorithms to determine pay, scheduling, and access to work, while the data needed to understand and challenge these systems remains out of reach for workers and organizers. To address....