New feature expands GigU's Cherry Picker tool to calculate true profit per trip for Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and other platform drivers — as academic and labor research confirms earnings have declined more than 20% since 2022 Driver empowerment upstart triples revenue, will open U.S. office in Miami, and earns a finalist berth in the prestigious SXSW Pitch 2026 competition
MIAMI, Feb. 24, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- GigU, the driver empowerment app downloaded by more than one million gig workers, today announced the launch of its Net Profit Calculator — a new feature integrated directly into GigU's popular Cherry Picker tool that shows gig drivers their actual profit on every trip offer in real time, after deducting expenses like fuel, maintenance, insurance and platform fees.
The new in-app feature, which went live simultaneously in the United States and Brazil on February 23, transforms the GigU app from an earnings optimization tool into a full financial intelligence platform for the roughly five million Americans who drive for Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and other gig driver platforms.
The Transparency Crisis:
The need for driver-side financial transparency is urgent. Columbia Business School research found that Uber's shift to algorithmic "upfront pricing" enabled the company to raise rider fares while cutting driver pay on billions of trips — increasing its take rate from 32% to more than 42% since 2022.
The National Employment Law Project corroborated these findings, reporting that both Uber and Lyft now retain roughly 40% of each fare on average — and as much as 70% on individual rides — while Uber quietly stopped disclosing its global take rate as of Q1 2025.
Meanwhile, Gridwise Analytics reports that average gig driver earnings have declined more than 20% since 2022, with 72% of drivers saying it has become harder to earn the same income year over year.
How GigU's Net Profit Calculator Works:
Until now, most gig drivers have focused on gross earnings — the top-line number displayed in their platform apps — without a practical way to account for the business expenses that can consume between 25–40% of their gross revenue.
Now, GigU's Net Profit Calculator within the app closes that gap by walking drivers through a simple setup process to input their real costs — fuel, vehicle insurance, maintenance, registration fees and other expenses. The app can then display actual profit per trip, per mile and per hour directly inside the Cherry Picker overlay every time a ride offer appears.
The new in-app feature includes a "Simulate Higher Earnings" slider that lets drivers model profitability scenarios and instantly apply new thresholds to Cherry Picker's color-coded trip filters — green for profitable rides, yellow for acceptable, red for trips to avoid. Drivers can toggle between daily, weekly and monthly views of their net profit, with a full cost breakdown by category.
"Cherry picking is about accepting profitable trips and rejecting bad ones. Drivers make that call dozens of times a day. We built the Net Profit Calculator into GigU so they can see in real time how much profit per hour a trip offer is paying. Better information, smarter decisions, more profit," said Marcus Pais, GigU's Chief Product Officer and co-founder.
What Else Is New in GigU's Latest Release...
Other GigU app updates since late last year include:
3 billion+ rides analyzed: GigU's database has now processed data from more than three billion ride offers, powering the machine learning that makes Cherry Picker and Net Profit increasingly accurate.
Multi-platform support: GigU now works across Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, GrubHub and Uber Eats, enabling drivers who work multiple platforms to optimize earnings in one place.
Annual subscription: Drivers using Android may now subscribe at $49.95 per year (vs. $6.95/month) — a significant savings over the monthly plan — reflecting GigU's commitment to affordability.
Significant GigU Growth in 2025:
GigU closed 2025 having tripled its revenue, reaching USD $300,000 in monthly recurring revenue and solidifying its position as the most widely used driver empowerment platform in the Americas. The company serves more than 140,000 paying subscribers across its three current markets (Brazil, Portugal and the U.S.), and projects it will triple its subscriber base during 2026.
GigU users increase their profitability by an average of up to 30% by selecting rides that best fit their individual cost structure, according to company data.
U.S. Expansion: Miami Office
To support its accelerating growth in North America, GigU is opening a U.S. office in the Miami, Florida area — establishing a hub with direct connectivity to its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The company is actively hiring for U.S.-based roles across product, marketing and community operations, with positions expected to be filled by Q2 2026.
"Gig drivers deserve to know whether a trip is actually profitable before they accept it — not after. The Net Profit Calculator is the feature our community has been asking for, and it arrives at a moment when the gap between what platforms charge riders and what they pay drivers has never been wider," said Luiz Gustavo Neves, CEO and co-founder of GigU. "We are building the future of worker-empowered technology — and our momentum heading into SXSW proves this model works."
GigU Selected as SXSW Pitch 2026 Finalist:
GigU has been selected as a finalist for the 2026 SXSW Pitch competition in the Smart Cities, Transportation, Manufacturing & Logistics category. CEO Luiz Gustavo Neves will present GigU's vision on March 13 at the JW Marriott in Austin, Texas, as one of 45 companies selected to pitch at the 18th annual event — a premier showcase for early-stage technology before industry experts and investors.
GigU is the only Brazil-born startup with U.S. operations competing at this year's SXSW Pitch, underscoring the company's bridging of the two largest gig economies in the Americas. Winners will be announced on Saturday, March 14, 2026.
Availability:
The GigU app with the newly integrated Net Profit Calculator is available now for Android devices via Google Play, with a free 15-day trial for new users.
About GigU
GigU empowers gig-economy workers to take control of their earnings, safety and financial future through innovative technology that levels the playing field with big tech platforms. Born from direct engagement and face-to-face interactions with gig drivers in Brazil, GigU transforms smartphones into intelligent earnings optimization tools, helping ride-share and delivery drivers increase their daily profit by 25–30% while providing enhanced safety features.
The company has more than one million downloads, more than 140,000 paying subscribers and has raised nearly $4 million in seed funding to support its expansion in the Americas. For more information, visit https://gigu.app/us and the GigU Blog: https://gigu.app/us/blog
U.S. Media Contact:
Chris Knight
U.S. Communications & Editorial Director for GigU
@ Divino Group / MOUSA.I.
(415) 786-9226 m
Editors' Notes & Resources:
Digital Press Kit: https://app.air.inc/a/b98V56oYR
(Includes new in-app Net Profit feature video and screenshot)
SXSW Pitch 2026 Finalist Announcement: Official SXSW Press Release (PDF)
Columbia Business School Research: How Uber Became a Cash-Generating Machine by Prof. Len Sherman
NELP Research: Unpacking Uber and Lyft's Predatory Take Rates
Gridwise Analytics: 2025 Annual Gig Mobility Report
GigU Blog: https://gigu.app/us/blog
Media Contact
Chris Knight, GigU Communications Director, 1 4157869226, [email protected], https://gigu.app/us
Thiago Veira, GigU Head of Global Growth, 55 219 9664 4020, [email protected], https://gigu.app/us
SOURCE GigU
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