Lawsuits claim delivery robots recorded biometric data without permission

Two Chicago lawsuits have been filed, alleging that delivery robots from Coco Robotics and Serve Robotics recorded biometric data without permission. The individuals claim that robots, delivered through DoorDash and Uber Eats, scanned their faces and bodies while they were unlocking the robot cargo bays to retrieve their orders, without explicit prior consent.

If these allegations prove true, it would mean that Coco and Serve are in breach of the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) of 2008. The lawsuits are described as class-action suits, claiming statutory damages ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 per violation. Both companies have denied the allegations, with Coco stating that the legal action is frivolous and Serve claiming that it does not use data to identify individuals or create biometric profiles, fundamentally misunderstanding its own technology.

The privacy policies of both companies are said to be vague, with Serve noting that data retention periods are determined by contractual obligations with delivery partners and shared with unnamed service providers, vendors, and AI companies for training purposes. The core of the case will depend on whether the data collection was performed without permission and whether it violates the Illinois privacy act.