Uber Technologies Inc. is expanding its gig-economy workforce to include programmers, which is a departure from its traditional rideshare business.

The company has launched a new division called Scaled Solutions, which focuses on AI training and data labeling. This allows businesses to outsource their artificial intelligence development to independent contractors. Scaled Solutions builds on Uber's existing internal team that handles large-scale annotation tasks for its rideshare, food delivery, and freight operations.

Now, Scaled Solutions is also serving external clients such as Aurora Innovation Inc., a company supported by Uber that specializes in self-driving software for commercial trucks, and Niantic Inc., the developer of the popular game Pokémon Go. By entering the AI data labeling market, Uber aims to utilize its gig workforce to provide high-quality datasets, meeting the increasing demand for AI development services in various industries.