Uber caps employee AI spending after blowing through budget in four months Uber has implemented monthly spending caps of $1,500 per employee for AI tools to control exorbitant costs, following the revelation that its annual AI budget was depleted in just four months. This move highlights a broader industry challenge of proving AI’s return on investment, as companies struggle to link AI usage directly to new consumer features or tangible productivity gains.

• Uber has introduced internal monthly spending caps of $1,500 per employee and per agentic coding tool.
• This cost-cutting measure follows the depletion of Uber’s entire annual AI budget within four months.
• The company had previously encouraged extensive AI usage among staff, even creating competitive leaderboards.
• Uber’s COO expressed skepticism about the direct link between AI usage and the development of new consumer features.
• The situation reflects a wider tech industry concern about the return on investment for substantial AI spending. Continue reading https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/02/uber-caps-employee-ai-spending-after-blowing-through-budget-in-four-months/