Delivery app rules have become a flashpoint in cities across the US as lawmakers, workers, and tech platforms battle over pay and fees. In New York, Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani said the fight produced a $104 million win against Uber Eats and DoorDash after the companies changed how tipping worked in their apps in January. The outcome is now dividing New Yorkers over who benefited most: delivery workers, customers, or the apps.
Mamdani says app changes led to a $104 million result
Zohran Mamdani said Uber Eats and DoorDash hid tip buttons and set default tips below 10%, which he said drove down earnings for delivery workers. He said tips for delivery workers fell 79% before the companies changed their apps in January. Mamdani described the outcome as a $104 million win against the delivery apps.
The two companies are at the center of the dispute because of how tipping appeared inside their ordering platforms. The confirmed figures publicly tied to the fight are the $104 million total, the 79% drop in tips, and the below-10% default tip settings Mamdani described. January is the key date because that is when the companies made changes to their apps, according to Mamdani’s public statement.
The New York impact is clear, but some details are still missing
This dispute is specifically about New York, where delivery workers, restaurants, and customers all felt the effects of app design changes. Mamdani said the January changes forced Uber Eats and DoorDash to alter how tipping worked, which makes New York the focus of the reported $104 million outcome. For city residents, that puts a dollar figure on a policy fight that many mostly experienced through checkout screens.
What is confirmed is limited to the broad numbers Mamdani shared: $104 million, a 79% tip decline, and default tips below 10%. What is not yet publicly detailed in the material available here is how that $104 million is calculated across workers, orders, or time periods in New York. A full public breakdown by borough, neighborhood, or platform has not been released in the source material provided.
Why this case is dividing New Yorkers now
The split reaction comes from the basic tension at the center of app-based food delivery in New York: worker pay on one side and customer costs on the other. Mamdani said the companies hid tip buttons and lowered default tip prompts to under 10%, a design choice that he said caused a 79% drop in tips. That makes the argument less about a single promotion and more about how app design can shape pay.
For delivery workers, the reported 79% drop is the clearest number in the dispute because tips are a direct part of take-home income. For customers, the issue is more about what they saw at checkout in January and whether tipping options were clearly presented. For now, the factual bottom line is narrow but significant: Mamdani says Uber Eats and DoorDash changed their apps in January, and he says that fight produced a $104 million win in New York.
