Chicago delivery robots sued over claims they scanned customers' faces without consent

The food delivery robots that have become a fixture on Chicago sidewalks are now the subject of two proposed class-action lawsuits alleging they do something their operators never disclosed: scan customers' faces and hands, then feed that biometric data into artificial intelligence systems and share it with third parties.

The complaints, filed Oct. 9 in Cook County Circuit Court, accuse Coco Robotics and Serve Robotics of violating Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act. The plaintiffs — Mitchell Breidinger, a Near North Side resident who received a DoorDash order via a Coco robot on Sept. 29, and Barry Schain, a Lincoln Park resident who received three Uber Eats deliveries from Serve robots, most recently on Oct. 4 — allege that neither was informed his biometric data was being gathered, nor did either provide written consent.

The filings state that three-dimensional measurements of customers' faces and hands are captured by the robots' cameras and LiDAR sensors as those customers walk up to the machines, punch in a code, and collect their orders. Pedestrians on Chicago sidewalks who happen to pass the robots also have their faces, hands and bodies scanned, the lawsuits allege. Breidinger's lawsuit further claims a remote human operator watched video of his delivery in real time.

The complaints allege the biometric measurements are stored alongside customers' names and addresses, linking the data to identifiable individuals. According to Breidinger's lawsuit, Coco passed along data gathered by its robots to OpenAI and other third parties to use in training artificial intelligence. Serve's own disclosures about licensing video and LiDAR datasets to outside parties for that same purpose are cited in Schain's lawsuit.

Both companies flatly denied the core allegations. Coco's head of government relations, Carl Hansen, said the lawsuit 'fundamentally misunderstands' the company's technology.

We have not collected biometric data in Chicago, and thus have never shared it with any third-parties, and are confident that this frivolous lawsuit will go away.— Carl Hansen, Head of Government Relations, Coco Robotics

Coco added that the data it does share is navigational — for example, real-time sidewalk hazard information provided to BlindSquare, a navigation app for people who are blind or have low vision — and that it does not share data from the beginning or end of delivery trips under its data-sharing partnerships, according to Block Club Chicago.

Serve does not use that data to identify individuals and our systems are not designed to identify individuals or create biometric profiles.— Serve Robotics spokesperson

What makes the lawsuits legally significant is the statute they invoke. Under Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act, which became law in 2008, any company that gathers biometric identifiers — among them scans of face or hand geometry — must give written notice detailing why the data is being collected and for how long, secure written consent, keep a policy governing data retention and destruction, and adhere to strict rules on how that data is stored and shared. Each negligent violation draws statutory damages of $1,000, while intentional or reckless violations carry $5,000 apiece, with attorney fees added on top.

Neither plaintiff says they chose robot delivery. Both lawsuits note that their orders were assigned to robots without their selection, meaning they had no opportunity to review or consent to any data practices before the robots arrived at their doors.

The suits land amid sustained and growing friction over Chicago's robot delivery pilot. The Personal Delivery Device Pilot Program was introduced to the City Council by former Mayor Lori Lightfoot in 2022. Coco was licensed by the city in November 2024; Serve launched in September 2025. Unless the City Council acts to extend or end it earlier, the program — which the Chicago Department of Transportation and the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection oversee together — will expire in May 2027.

Residents have raised concerns well beyond privacy. A Serve robot broke through the glass of a CTA bus shelter in West Town in March, and within days a Coco robot hit another bus shelter in Old Town. A video posted in September showing more than a dozen Coco robots apparently going in circles and becoming stuck on a Lincoln Park sidewalk racked up hundreds of thousands of views. Ald. Daniel La Spata turned down proposals to expand robots through much of his ward in February, after more than 83 percent of survey respondents said they were strongly opposed.

Josh Robertson, a Lincoln Park resident who launched a petition called No Sidewalk Bots urging the city to pause the program, said the lawsuits reflect concerns he has heard consistently from neighbors.

We've had over 4,600 Chicagoans add their name to our petition. Those who signed and have added their name to the petition have used the optional incident field to voice concerns like privacy-related risks.— Josh Robertson, creator of No Sidewalk Bots petition

I think it's prudent that we're now talking about this issue about the robots' effect on privacy and the risks that might come with their presence in our neighborhoods.— Josh Robertson, creator of No Sidewalk Bots petition

The cases are in their earliest stages — no rulings have been issued and the allegations remain unproven. But with the pilot program's future up for debate at City Hall and a 2027 expiration date approaching, the outcome of these lawsuits could shape whether, and under what conditions, delivery robots continue rolling through Chicago neighborhoods.

Why it matters — The lawsuits put Illinois' powerful biometric privacy law — and the future of Chicago's robot delivery program — to a test that could set precedent for how autonomous delivery technology is regulated nationwide.

Sources differ on Whether the robots collect biometric data from customers: Yes — cameras and LiDAR capture 3D facial and hand geometry measurements without notice or consent (blockclubchicago.org (plaintiffs' position)) vs No — 'We have not collected biometric data in Chicago' (chicago.suntimes.com (Coco Robotics)) vs No — 'Our systems are not designed to identify individuals or create biometric profiles' (chicago.suntimes.com (Serve Robotics))

Reported by blockclubchicago.org, chicago.suntimes.com, cbsnews.com