Delivery robot providers face lawsuits over biometric data scanning in Illinois

Two California-based delivery robot providers are facing lawsuits in Illinois for allegedly violating the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). The legal actions, filed in a state court, claim that the companies' autonomous systems have been scanning the faces and identifying characteristics of pedestrians in Chicago without obtaining prior consent.

According to the complaints, the robots use sensors and cameras on sidewalks to capture biometric data in real time. This information is reportedly transmitted to human operators to assist with the monitoring and control of the units. Furthermore, the plaintiffs allege that the raw data is forwarded to third-party servers to train both proprietary and external artificial intelligence models.

The litigation serves as a significant test of how BIPA applies to autonomous systems operating in public spaces and the extent to which such technology can legally monitor individuals in their immediate vicinity.