9 ms·

Uber Opens Its API

134 points by zabalmendi 12y ago

smackfu 12y ago
My preference is for apps to just have a directions link, and then the various providers can plug into the central OS maps. The odd thing is that Uber isn't integrated into the iOS Maps app as a transit provider. So you can't actually use it in that fashion.
- Aqua_Geek 12y ago
  It actually is integrated, but it might not support your area (the configuration file used to tell the system where it's supported might be out of date).
  - smackfu 12y ago
    Ah, good point. We are in a bit of a grey area at our current location. We don't really have UberX in this town (Middletown, CT), but we live near to the interstate that a lot of UberX drivers are on going to and from a metro they do support (New Haven, CT). So the app will call us a car, but it's always 15-20 mins for pickup time.
chaghalibaghali 12y ago
This could potentially be great news - I've been working on an Uber client app for Firefox OS [1] using the reverse-engineering done by the Uber CLI project [2]. It's pretty a pretty basic implementation at the moment (you can currently book a ride based on an address, and not much else), but allowed me to move to FirefoxOS for my primary phone - Uber being the last 'must-have' app for me that didn't have a webapp version. Having something official to work with (assuming they don't go down the Twitter route of not allowing anything that replicates the functionality of the main Uber app) would help a lot. [1] https://github.com/thomshutt/FFUber https://github.com/thomshutt/FFUber [2] https://github.com/tals/uber.py https://github.com/tals/uber.py
- skram 12y ago
  Unfortunately, the ability to truly replicate the Uber apps is unavailable in the completely open API in that you cannot order rides.
  - chaghalibaghali 12y ago
    Ah, looks like I'll be sticking with my current approach for now then.
    - mcclavius 12y ago
      Mike here, from the Uber API team. The Request A Ride endpoint is currently only available on a whitelist basis. We'd love to hear your ideas on the integration if you'd like to share them with us!
      - chaghalibaghali 12y ago
        Hi Mike, thanks for replying - not sure of the best way to contact you, but my email address is in my profile if you'd like to get in touch.
        mcclavius 12y ago
        Awesome. Might be user error on my part but I do not see your email address. Send a message to developer[at]uber.com and we can chat.
        jaredsohn 12y ago
        FYI, the e-mail field on Hacker News is hidden (you should add it to the about text if you want people to see it.)
      - toomuchtodo 12y ago
        Hey Mike! I had an idea for using the Uber Request A Ride endpoint for an app/site to allow bars/clubs to use Uber for getting impaired drivers home (ordering a ride for them). Would this be grounds for whitelisting?
vishalzone2002 12y ago
uber moves pretty fast. I think their speed of innovation is commendable. But 17 billion USD evaluation still seem unjustified to me.
- goatforce5 12y ago
  'Unjust' to who?
  - vishalzone2002 12y ago
    I said me there..why a negative for that?
    - evanb 12y ago
      I think you mean unjustified. Unjust usually means something like: against the principles of justice.
      - vishalzone2002 12y ago
        yes thats right, fixed now!
- dansky 12y ago
  They are shooting to become "too big to fail". Now the play with bankers, media and politics show that direction. There is surely no other way to change the law in their favor in the U.S., may not be so easy elsewhere. For that the valuation seems right and may even have to rise. It's all on paper. Think of Uber as a global taxi and delivery-service - basically aiming to become a new monopoly or the strongest player there. Taxi is very fragmented with money going to lots of pockets. Uber is one pocket.
- aianus 12y ago
  I used to pay Uber $300+ a month when I lived in SF. Seems like a bargain compared to WhatsApp or Facebook.
sergiotapia 12y ago
Uber is a dirty company, don't give them your business. http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/08/13/uber-employees-allegedly-canceled-thousands-of-lyft-rides-fake-requests/ http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/08/13/uber-employees-a...
- aianus 12y ago
  Still not as dirty and corrupt as the taxi industry.
  - potatolicious 12y ago
    This isn't a contest.
    - aianus 12y ago
      Of course it is. In many places (eg Toronto) I can only choose between Uber and Taxis so I'm going to go with Uber.
      - potatolicious 12y ago
        There is a third choice: neither. You're in Toronto for crying out loud - despite the kvetching of its residents the TTC is one of the best transit systems on the continent. Uber is shady as fuck, so is the cab industry. Pointing out the degrees to which they are shady is not particularly useful and serves only to rationalize supporting unethical actors.
        diminoten 12y ago
        What's shady about an Uber ride? I've taken dozens and not a single one gave me any problems whatsoever. No one's going to care how the front office of Uber acts if the product they offer is solid.
        potatolicious 12y ago
hisabness 12y ago
also, here in denver, most uber drivers are also lyft drivers. i.e. drivers keep both apps running to increase their chances of getting a request.
- JoeAltmaier 12y ago
  Really? That's marvelous. Is there an app begging to be written here? For the independent driver's needs, not for the supplier (Uber/Lyft etc). An aggregator of ride request feeds.
  - thejosh 12y ago
    Yes, simply have every taxi related app feed into a central one, take a few cents off every transaction, boom done.
  - smackfu 12y ago
    Uber provides the drivers with a locked-down iPhone to get the ride requests, so it's not that simple.
    - JoeAltmaier 12y ago
      Surprised; I thought Uber was some sort of public-access ridesharing thing. If they vet drivers and license them, how is it different from any other cab service?
      - smackfu 12y ago
        Mainly because they don't actually license them unless the local authorities force them to. They do vet them, in theory. And to follow-on, the practical difference is that they are a lot less terrible than most existing cab / car services.
        iancarroll 12y ago
        People have been selling/giving away their Uber accounts too, IIRC.
theutan 12y ago
Uber launches an affiliate program could have just as easily been the title.
- jkestner 12y ago
  To answer the question that I had, how affiliates will get paid - https://developer.uber.com/earn/ https://developer.uber.com/earn/ says in Uber credits, and "cash rewards coming soon".
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
downandout 12y ago
"....to get its service on as many apps as possible, it is launching an affiliate program to offer up free credits to developers who get people using its service." If they aren't offering a cash percentage, I don't think they're going to find many takers. I certainly wouldn't integrate a new API in exchange for Uber credits. Edit: On the affiliate page, it says "Cash rewards coming soon" but it seems rather odd that they wouldn't launch with that. Generally affiliate programs pay money.
- omfg 12y ago
  It seems to offer a convenience for the services integrating with it that wasn't possible before. If it's a nice addition for the customer then they get value out of it.
- thesimon 12y ago
  Currently, they offer $5 credit per signup for US developers. Referring via the uber dashboard gives you $10. Am I missing a point or why would anyone use it if you don't get cash at the moment, get $5 less, it only works for US and you can't register people via the Api?
hawkharris 12y ago
From a technological standpoint, there are many reasons why I feel excited and lucky to be alive during this time in history. But smarter safer transportation, spearheaded by companies like Google and Uber, tops the list.
- beggi 12y ago
  How is Uber safer?
  - clarkm 12y ago
    It reduces drunk driving.
    - k-mcgrady 12y ago
      ...taxis already do that.
      - clarkm 12y ago
        Yes, but outside major metros, people don't take taxis. But for some reason they'll take Uber. Or at least they're starting to.
        jonursenbach 12y ago
        Uber doesn't exist outside major metro areas. https://www.uber.com/cities https://www.uber.com/cities
        clarkm 12y ago
        I guess "dense urban centers" would have been more clear, but my point is the same. Uber operates in a lot of places where people don't take cabs.
      - pinkyand 12y ago
        UBER is reducing prices through both unfair and fair(ride sharing fr ex.) means.
kaeawc 12y ago
Their developer pages are here: https://developer.uber.com/ https://developer.uber.com/
clarkm 12y ago
Though it's not mentioned in the article, Uber recently partnered with Concur for business travel. Uber now sends all my ride receipts directly Concur, and my expense reports are populated automatically -- it's first-class integration right in the app. And now Uber is opening their API? IMO, this is a huge deal. Perhaps working with Concur really drove home the sheer size of the corporate travel machine, and the massive opportunities they were missing out on by not participating in its web of partners and exclusive contracts. I know Uber already has VIP (in NYC at least) and is coming out with corporate discounts, but I'm betting we see Uber move a lot more in that direction.
- Aubric 12y ago
  Uber has been working on this for a long time. No chance the recent Concur / UberForBusiness integration inspired them to open up their API.
ejain 12y ago
Being able to access the history is nice; could be useful when combined with data from other sources... The API appears to be well thought out--except for the epoch timestamps without time zone offsets :-(
- seregine 12y ago
  epoch timestamps don't need timezone offsets. The epoch timestamp is the number of seconds from a specified "zero" time. That number can be translated to a time in any timezone. E.g. right now: % date +"%s"; date; date -u 1408580844 Wed Aug 20 17:27:24 PDT 2014 Thu Aug 21 00:27:24 UTC 2014
  - ejain 12y ago
    Sure, an epoch timestamp can be translated to any time zone, but what was the original time zone? Consider these questions: Do I use Uber more often before or after noon? Is this a photo of a sunrise or a of a sunset? How late do I typically go to bed? In the case of Uber we could try to guess the time zone from the coordinates, but it's not trivial.
lnanek2 12y ago
Too bad it is read-only. :( TechCrunch Disrupt is coming up next month and I would have loved writing an Uber client for Google Glass. Having the user login on a desktop or mobile and then using their oauth credentials on a companion Glass app is all doable. They simply don't have any API for requesting a ride, however, once you have the credentials: https://developer.uber.com/v1/endpoints/ https://developer.uber.com/v1/endpoints/ They have some deep linking APIs to start their apps on Android, iOS, or a mobile web site - but none of those will work on Glass. I suppose, theoretically, I can make the HTTP requests to their mobile site as if I were a browser and a user tapping the right buttons, but that it is a lot more brittle than having an API. It will break any time they change their web site. Being able to say, "OK, Glass,""Get me a ride" and the car shows up would be exciting. "OK, Glass" "Show me the cost and time estimate to go to the Design Center" is just a boring advertisement. Right now their API just allows boring advertisements, pretty much.
- dozy 12y ago
  Agreed it's a shame this is read only - I'd like to build this for Android Wear, among other things. You could build a companion app, send the HTTP request you mention, which would trigger a push notification to that user's companion app/device, which could then trigger a deep link to the Uber app :)
- extrabot 12y ago
  As mentioned in the blog post, that API is built but in whitelist-only mode: What about requesting a ride? Yes, we’ve implemented that endpoint as well, but because calling it immediately dispatches a real driver in the real world, we’re releasing it in a more controlled fashion, starting with a small set of partners. Stay tuned for more on that, and please let us know if you’re interested in being added to the whitelist.
- davidmking 12y ago
  Hard to completely released the ability to order cars through any app to any person. Although, the API is largely going to be a part of the marketing more than anything else I would assume.
- 12y ago

134 points by zabalmendi 12y ago

My preference is for apps to just have a directions link, and then the various providers can plug into the central OS maps. The odd thing is that Uber isn't integrated into the iOS Maps app as a transit provider. So you can't actually use it in that fashion.

Aqua_Geek 12y ago
It actually is integrated, but it might not support your area (the configuration file used to tell the system where it's supported might be out of date).
- smackfu 12y ago
  Ah, good point. We are in a bit of a grey area at our current location. We don't really have UberX in this town (Middletown, CT), but we live near to the interstate that a lot of UberX drivers are on going to and from a metro they do support (New Haven, CT). So the app will call us a car, but it's always 15-20 mins for pickup time.

chaghalibaghali 12y ago

This could potentially be great news - I've been working on an Uber client app for Firefox OS [1] using the reverse-engineering done by the Uber CLI project [2]. It's pretty a pretty basic implementation at the moment (you can currently book a ride based on an address, and not much else), but allowed me to move to FirefoxOS for my primary phone - Uber being the last 'must-have' app for me that didn't have a webapp version. Having something official to work with (assuming they don't go down the Twitter route of not allowing anything that replicates the functionality of the main Uber app) would help a lot. [1] https://github.com/thomshutt/FFUber https://github.com/thomshutt/FFUber [2] https://github.com/tals/uber.py https://github.com/tals/uber.py

skram 12y ago
Unfortunately, the ability to truly replicate the Uber apps is unavailable in the completely open API in that you cannot order rides.
- chaghalibaghali 12y ago
  Ah, looks like I'll be sticking with my current approach for now then.
  - mcclavius 12y ago
    Mike here, from the Uber API team. The Request A Ride endpoint is currently only available on a whitelist basis. We'd love to hear your ideas on the integration if you'd like to share them with us!
    - chaghalibaghali 12y ago
      Hi Mike, thanks for replying - not sure of the best way to contact you, but my email address is in my profile if you'd like to get in touch.
      - mcclavius 12y ago
        Awesome. Might be user error on my part but I do not see your email address. Send a message to developer[at]uber.com and we can chat.
      - jaredsohn 12y ago
        FYI, the e-mail field on Hacker News is hidden (you should add it to the about text if you want people to see it.)
    - toomuchtodo 12y ago
      Hey Mike! I had an idea for using the Uber Request A Ride endpoint for an app/site to allow bars/clubs to use Uber for getting impaired drivers home (ordering a ride for them). Would this be grounds for whitelisting?

vishalzone2002 12y ago

uber moves pretty fast. I think their speed of innovation is commendable. But 17 billion USD evaluation still seem unjustified to me.

goatforce5 12y ago
'Unjust' to who?
- vishalzone2002 12y ago
  I said me there..why a negative for that?
  - evanb 12y ago
    I think you mean unjustified. Unjust usually means something like: against the principles of justice.
    - vishalzone2002 12y ago
      yes thats right, fixed now!
dansky 12y ago
They are shooting to become "too big to fail". Now the play with bankers, media and politics show that direction. There is surely no other way to change the law in their favor in the U.S., may not be so easy elsewhere. For that the valuation seems right and may even have to rise. It's all on paper. Think of Uber as a global taxi and delivery-service - basically aiming to become a new monopoly or the strongest player there. Taxi is very fragmented with money going to lots of pockets. Uber is one pocket.
aianus 12y ago
I used to pay Uber $300+ a month when I lived in SF. Seems like a bargain compared to WhatsApp or Facebook.

sergiotapia 12y ago

Uber is a dirty company, don't give them your business. http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/08/13/uber-employees-allegedly-canceled-thousands-of-lyft-rides-fake-requests/ http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/08/13/uber-employees-a...

aianus 12y ago
Still not as dirty and corrupt as the taxi industry.
- potatolicious 12y ago
  This isn't a contest.
  - aianus 12y ago
    Of course it is. In many places (eg Toronto) I can only choose between Uber and Taxis so I'm going to go with Uber.
    - potatolicious 12y ago
      There is a third choice: neither. You're in Toronto for crying out loud - despite the kvetching of its residents the TTC is one of the best transit systems on the continent. Uber is shady as fuck, so is the cab industry. Pointing out the degrees to which they are shady is not particularly useful and serves only to rationalize supporting unethical actors.
      - diminoten 12y ago
        What's shady about an Uber ride? I've taken dozens and not a single one gave me any problems whatsoever. No one's going to care how the front office of Uber acts if the product they offer is solid.
        potatolicious 12y ago

hisabness 12y ago

also, here in denver, most uber drivers are also lyft drivers. i.e. drivers keep both apps running to increase their chances of getting a request.

JoeAltmaier 12y ago
Really? That's marvelous. Is there an app begging to be written here? For the independent driver's needs, not for the supplier (Uber/Lyft etc). An aggregator of ride request feeds.
- thejosh 12y ago
  Yes, simply have every taxi related app feed into a central one, take a few cents off every transaction, boom done.
- smackfu 12y ago
  Uber provides the drivers with a locked-down iPhone to get the ride requests, so it's not that simple.
  - JoeAltmaier 12y ago
    Surprised; I thought Uber was some sort of public-access ridesharing thing. If they vet drivers and license them, how is it different from any other cab service?
    - smackfu 12y ago
      Mainly because they don't actually license them unless the local authorities force them to. They do vet them, in theory. And to follow-on, the practical difference is that they are a lot less terrible than most existing cab / car services.
      - iancarroll 12y ago
        People have been selling/giving away their Uber accounts too, IIRC.

theutan 12y ago

Uber launches an affiliate program could have just as easily been the title.

jkestner 12y ago
To answer the question that I had, how affiliates will get paid - https://developer.uber.com/earn/ https://developer.uber.com/earn/ says in Uber credits, and "cash rewards coming soon".
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]

downandout 12y ago

"....to get its service on as many apps as possible, it is launching an affiliate program to offer up free credits to developers who get people using its service." If they aren't offering a cash percentage, I don't think they're going to find many takers. I certainly wouldn't integrate a new API in exchange for Uber credits. Edit: On the affiliate page, it says "Cash rewards coming soon" but it seems rather odd that they wouldn't launch with that. Generally affiliate programs pay money.

omfg 12y ago
It seems to offer a convenience for the services integrating with it that wasn't possible before. If it's a nice addition for the customer then they get value out of it.
thesimon 12y ago
Currently, they offer $5 credit per signup for US developers. Referring via the uber dashboard gives you $10. Am I missing a point or why would anyone use it if you don't get cash at the moment, get $5 less, it only works for US and you can't register people via the Api?

hawkharris 12y ago

From a technological standpoint, there are many reasons why I feel excited and lucky to be alive during this time in history. But smarter safer transportation, spearheaded by companies like Google and Uber, tops the list.

beggi 12y ago
How is Uber safer?
- clarkm 12y ago
  It reduces drunk driving.
  - k-mcgrady 12y ago
    ...taxis already do that.
    - clarkm 12y ago
      Yes, but outside major metros, people don't take taxis. But for some reason they'll take Uber. Or at least they're starting to.
      - jonursenbach 12y ago
        Uber doesn't exist outside major metro areas. https://www.uber.com/cities https://www.uber.com/cities
        clarkm 12y ago
        I guess "dense urban centers" would have been more clear, but my point is the same. Uber operates in a lot of places where people don't take cabs.
    - pinkyand 12y ago
      UBER is reducing prices through both unfair and fair(ride sharing fr ex.) means.

kaeawc 12y ago

Their developer pages are here: https://developer.uber.com/ https://developer.uber.com/

clarkm 12y ago

Though it's not mentioned in the article, Uber recently partnered with Concur for business travel. Uber now sends all my ride receipts directly Concur, and my expense reports are populated automatically -- it's first-class integration right in the app. And now Uber is opening their API? IMO, this is a huge deal. Perhaps working with Concur really drove home the sheer size of the corporate travel machine, and the massive opportunities they were missing out on by not participating in its web of partners and exclusive contracts. I know Uber already has VIP (in NYC at least) and is coming out with corporate discounts, but I'm betting we see Uber move a lot more in that direction.

Aubric 12y ago
Uber has been working on this for a long time. No chance the recent Concur / UberForBusiness integration inspired them to open up their API.

ejain 12y ago

Being able to access the history is nice; could be useful when combined with data from other sources... The API appears to be well thought out--except for the epoch timestamps without time zone offsets :-(

seregine 12y ago
epoch timestamps don't need timezone offsets. The epoch timestamp is the number of seconds from a specified "zero" time. That number can be translated to a time in any timezone. E.g. right now: % date +"%s"; date; date -u 1408580844 Wed Aug 20 17:27:24 PDT 2014 Thu Aug 21 00:27:24 UTC 2014
- ejain 12y ago
  Sure, an epoch timestamp can be translated to any time zone, but what was the original time zone? Consider these questions: Do I use Uber more often before or after noon? Is this a photo of a sunrise or a of a sunset? How late do I typically go to bed? In the case of Uber we could try to guess the time zone from the coordinates, but it's not trivial.

lnanek2 12y ago

Too bad it is read-only. :( TechCrunch Disrupt is coming up next month and I would have loved writing an Uber client for Google Glass. Having the user login on a desktop or mobile and then using their oauth credentials on a companion Glass app is all doable. They simply don't have any API for requesting a ride, however, once you have the credentials: https://developer.uber.com/v1/endpoints/ https://developer.uber.com/v1/endpoints/ They have some deep linking APIs to start their apps on Android, iOS, or a mobile web site - but none of those will work on Glass. I suppose, theoretically, I can make the HTTP requests to their mobile site as if I were a browser and a user tapping the right buttons, but that it is a lot more brittle than having an API. It will break any time they change their web site. Being able to say, "OK, Glass,""Get me a ride" and the car shows up would be exciting. "OK, Glass" "Show me the cost and time estimate to go to the Design Center" is just a boring advertisement. Right now their API just allows boring advertisements, pretty much.

dozy 12y ago
Agreed it's a shame this is read only - I'd like to build this for Android Wear, among other things. You could build a companion app, send the HTTP request you mention, which would trigger a push notification to that user's companion app/device, which could then trigger a deep link to the Uber app :)
extrabot 12y ago
As mentioned in the blog post, that API is built but in whitelist-only mode: What about requesting a ride? Yes, we’ve implemented that endpoint as well, but because calling it immediately dispatches a real driver in the real world, we’re releasing it in a more controlled fashion, starting with a small set of partners. Stay tuned for more on that, and please let us know if you’re interested in being added to the whitelist.
davidmking 12y ago
Hard to completely released the ability to order cars through any app to any person. Although, the API is largely going to be a part of the marketing more than anything else I would assume.
12y ago