TikTok
- An Amazon delivery driver posted a TikTok describing how the company's AI-powered cameras work.
- She said the cameras flag drivers for sipping coffee or not buckling their seatbelt enough times.
- An Amazon spokesperson said the system has helped increase driver safety.
An Amazon driver took to social media to explain how the company's AI camera system can be used to flag delivery drivers for doing anything from taking a sip of coffee to failing to buckle their seatbelt enough times.
The TikTokker known as @ambergirts posted a video on Saturday breaking down how the tracking system works. Over the past two days, the video has garnered over 400,000 views.
In the TikTok, the Amazon driver explains how the four cameras on the Amazon delivery van monitor her driving, including one forward-facing camera, two cameras on the sides of the vehicle, and one in-cabin camera that faces the driver. She said that the camera that faces forward will monitor her following distance behind other cars, how well she responds to stop signs, as well as her speed. She said that if she fails to fully stop for a stop light, follows a car too closely, or goes more than six miles per hour faster than the speed limit she can be "dinged" with a violation.
Meanwhile, she said the in-cabin camera tracks her movement in the driver's seat.
"That camera is watching me while I drive so I cannot do a lot," she said in the video. "If I want a sip of my coffee, I have to pull over so that I can grab it and drink it because if I do it while I'm driving than that's a driver distracted, which is also a violation. I can't touch the center console or else that is a driver distracted violation."
An Amazon spokesperson told Insider that drivers are encouraged to stay hydrated on the job and can turn the cameras off during breaks. The spokesperson confirmed that the cameras are not used as a live feed.
The TikTokker said that one driver got a driver distracted violation for itching his beard while he was driving, which the tracking system interpreted as the driver holding a phone to his face. Though, she said the driver disputed the violation.
The Amazon driver said that the vehicle also monitors how often she buckles her seatbelt and if she doesn't buckle it enough she could face a "seatbelt violation." While the camera tracks movement, the driver said it doesn't have an audio option, which she described as a "nice" feature.
Insider previously reported that the AI-cameras can be used to determine driver's pay and employment status at the company. Each incident counts as one point that goes on a driver's weekly scorecard, except for stop sign violations which are weighted 10 times higher, The Information reported in 2021.
"So everyone who works for Amazon pretty much hates those little things, but we have to remember it's just for safety," the Amazon driver said in the TikTok video.
An Amazon spokesperson told Insider that drivers are able to dispute violations they consider to be inaccurate.
"The safety technology in delivery vans help keep drivers and the communities where we deliver safe, and claims that these cameras are intended for anything else are incorrect," an Amazon spokesperson said. "Since we started using them, we've seen a 35% reduction in collision rates across the network along with a reduction in distracted driving, speeding, tailgating, sign and signal violations, and drivers not wearing their seatbelts."
Over the past few weeks, @ambergirts has posted multiple day-in-the-life videos on TikTok about her experience at Amazon, often describing the perks of her job.
Amazon began installing the AI-powered cameras in its delivery vans in 2021. At the time, the company said the four cameras allowed the vehicles to flag 16 types of safety violations, including speeding and distracted driving.
The system monitors if drivers look away from the road, speed, or even yawn, and then can send a live feed of the 270-degree recording to managers, Insider previously reported. Amazon has said in the past that the cameras are not continuously live, but only come into play when the built-in AI detects potentially unsafe circumstances like unexpected braking or distracted driving.
An Amazon delivery driver told Insider last year that the cameras were initially the "most annoying part of the job," but he's come to accept the monitoring since it only impacts drivers who make safety violations.
Do you work for Amazon of have insight to share? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work email at gkay@insider.com