Katie J. Wells
@katiejwells.bsky.social
i study how labor platforms shape the way we live in cities. geographer. senior fellow @ainowinstitute.bsky.social. newish book: DISRUPTING D.C. (Princeton Univ Press 2023 and 2025 paperback)
dc, as the waymo debates unfold, take note...
“Technology like this could serve as a force multiplier and, in the future, could potentially have applications on our streets and greenways…”
Raleigh police consider driverless patrol cars that can stream live video, raising privacy concerns
Raleigh police are exploring autonomous patrol vehicles that could monitor city streets, raising questions about surveillance, privacy, data collection and oversight.
www.wral.com
October 6, 2026 at 12:25 PM
dc, as the waymo debates unfold, take note...
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
A year ago, @propublica.org told you immigration agents had detained more than 170 U.S. citizens.
We’ve updated our count, and we’ve got all the receipts.
The tally: At least 506 citizens detained. Sometimes held at gunpoint, handcuffed, or even deported.
projects.propublica.org/american-cit...
We’ve updated our count, and we’ve got all the receipts.
The tally: At least 506 citizens detained. Sometimes held at gunpoint, handcuffed, or even deported.
projects.propublica.org/american-cit...
More Than 500 U.S. Citizens Have Been Detained, Including Handcuffed or Held at Gunpoint, in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown — ProPublica
The government doesn’t track how often immigration officers detain U.S. citizens. So ProPublica did. We’ve found more than 500 Americans who were held against their will during this Trump administrati...
projects.propublica.org
October 6, 2026 at 11:35 AM
A year ago, @propublica.org told you immigration agents had detained more than 170 U.S. citizens.
We’ve updated our count, and we’ve got all the receipts.
The tally: At least 506 citizens detained. Sometimes held at gunpoint, handcuffed, or even deported.
projects.propublica.org/american-cit...
We’ve updated our count, and we’ve got all the receipts.
The tally: At least 506 citizens detained. Sometimes held at gunpoint, handcuffed, or even deported.
projects.propublica.org/american-cit...
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
@katiejwells.bsky.social was saying we should view “self-driving” cars as roving, urban data centers. They sure have the surveillance part down! Is this what we want for our communities?
Self-driving cars from Waymo, Zoox, and Tesla are studded with cameras and sensors. Some of them are pointing at riders. www.wired.com/story/when-t...
Your Driverless Cab Is Spying on You
Self-driving cars from Waymo, Zoox, and Tesla are studded with cameras and sensors. Some of them are pointing at riders.
www.wired.com
October 2, 2026 at 6:33 PM
@katiejwells.bsky.social was saying we should view “self-driving” cars as roving, urban data centers. They sure have the surveillance part down! Is this what we want for our communities?
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
NEW: Amazon will refund thousands of Prime members in Wards 7 and 8 for secretly excluding them from full delivery services.
The exclusions have now been lifted, and Amazon will also be required to change its practices.
No corporation is too big to be held accountable for deceiving DC residents.
The exclusions have now been lifted, and Amazon will also be required to change its practices.
No corporation is too big to be held accountable for deceiving DC residents.
October 1, 2026 at 2:39 PM
NEW: Amazon will refund thousands of Prime members in Wards 7 and 8 for secretly excluding them from full delivery services.
The exclusions have now been lifted, and Amazon will also be required to change its practices.
No corporation is too big to be held accountable for deceiving DC residents.
The exclusions have now been lifted, and Amazon will also be required to change its practices.
No corporation is too big to be held accountable for deceiving DC residents.
want to hear more about doordash's assault on home rule? or on its attempts to derail mamdani? join us tonight. freedcproject.org/event-list/s...
DoorDash walked into a buzzsaw of criticism and boycotts in D.C. this summer when it backed a Republican bill that would restrict when city lawmakers can impose new taxes and fees.
The delivery company is now walking back that bill: www.washingtonsun.com/metro/doorda...
The delivery company is now walking back that bill: www.washingtonsun.com/metro/doorda...
DoorDash Apologizes for Siding With GOP Bill Targeting D.C.
The company still wants the D.C. Council to make changes to a new delivery fee taking effect Thursday.
www.washingtonsun.com
October 1, 2026 at 2:51 PM
want to hear more about doordash's assault on home rule? or on its attempts to derail mamdani? join us tonight. freedcproject.org/event-list/s...
Looking forward to this conversation and lucky to be doing it. Silicon Valley vs. Home Rule.
Tomorrow (10/1), join AI Now's @katiejwells.bsky.social and Declan Cullen for a conversation about the impact of app-based delivery apps and the gig economy on DC. Hosted by @freedcproject.bsky.social & @claudiajonesschool.bsky.social.
Register here: freedcproject.org/event-list/s...
Register here: freedcproject.org/event-list/s...
Silicon Valley vs Home Rule Conversation — Free DC
Join the Claudia Jones School and Free DC for an evening conversation with Katie Wells and Declan Cullen, authors of The Rise of Uber and the Fall of the City . Presenters will discuss the impact o...
freedcproject.org
September 30, 2026 at 5:00 PM
Looking forward to this conversation and lucky to be doing it. Silicon Valley vs. Home Rule.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
"Algorithmic wages & prices are symptoms of a political economy built on the continuous conversion of movement, delay, fatigue, debt, location, browsing, hunger, punctuality, & desperation into commercial leverage." @veenadubal.bsky.social @katiejwells.bsky.social dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
Life Under the Algorithm - Dissent Magazine
Algorithmic wages and prices don’t just squeeze workers in the present. They make them predictably poor into the future.
dissentmagazine.org
September 29, 2026 at 6:36 PM
"Algorithmic wages & prices are symptoms of a political economy built on the continuous conversion of movement, delay, fatigue, debt, location, browsing, hunger, punctuality, & desperation into commercial leverage." @veenadubal.bsky.social @katiejwells.bsky.social dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
In a groundbreaking new legal paper, Sandeep Vaheesan argues companies that systematically violate labor, consumer, copyright, environmental, and other laws to undercut rivals are engaging in an unfair method of competition...
September 29, 2026 at 2:40 PM
In a groundbreaking new legal paper, Sandeep Vaheesan argues companies that systematically violate labor, consumer, copyright, environmental, and other laws to undercut rivals are engaging in an unfair method of competition...
not. to. be. missed.
We're pleased to share that @ambakak.bsky.social co-ED of @ainowinstitute.bsky.social will join @hellodcwp.bsky.social Commissioner @saalevine.bsky.social to discuss local AI governance with writer @edwardongwesojr.com next week.
RSVP at governing-ai-for-nyc-workers-and-consumers.eventbrite.com
RSVP at governing-ai-for-nyc-workers-and-consumers.eventbrite.com
Governing AI for Workers and Consumers: NYC's Public Approach
Dive into what NYC can do to advance affordability for working families during the rise of AI and corporate consolidation.
governing-ai-for-NYC-workers-and-consumers.eventbrite.com
September 28, 2026 at 1:42 PM
not. to. be. missed.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
While the news & white papers breathlessly cover the idea of a threat of a future AI bioweapon, an Ebola outbreak is escalating, having killed nearly 4,000 people so far.
The Trump admin has diminished US support to control it w/travel bans, an eroded CDC & a hobbled WHO www.who.int/emergencies/...
The Trump admin has diminished US support to control it w/travel bans, an eroded CDC & a hobbled WHO www.who.int/emergencies/...
Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus - Democratic Republic of the Congo
Since the last Disease Outbreak News was published on 11 September 2026, the Bundibugyo virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has expanded further, with two additional health zones af...
www.who.int
September 28, 2026 at 1:16 PM
While the news & white papers breathlessly cover the idea of a threat of a future AI bioweapon, an Ebola outbreak is escalating, having killed nearly 4,000 people so far.
The Trump admin has diminished US support to control it w/travel bans, an eroded CDC & a hobbled WHO www.who.int/emergencies/...
The Trump admin has diminished US support to control it w/travel bans, an eroded CDC & a hobbled WHO www.who.int/emergencies/...
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
This story brought me back to Kara, one of the mothers in my book, There Is No Place for Us. She was homeless with her four kids while driving for DoorDash. They had to pee in bottles so bathroom stops wouldn't make her late.
After gas, she earned $6.50 an hour—75 cents less than the minimum wage.
After gas, she earned $6.50 an hour—75 cents less than the minimum wage.
DoorDash spent $1.4M trying to stop Zohran Mamdani from becoming mayor.
This week's historic $131.5M enforcement action against DoorDash for underpaying NYC delivery workers shows why.
Yet another reminder that the only thing that can beat organized money is organized people.
This week's historic $131.5M enforcement action against DoorDash for underpaying NYC delivery workers shows why.
Yet another reminder that the only thing that can beat organized money is organized people.
DoorDash Spent $1.4 Million Trying to Stop Mamdani From Becoming Mayor. Now We Know Why.
In a wage-theft settlement, DoorDash now has to pay its workers around 100 times what it spent trying to beat Zohran Mam
theintercept.com
September 26, 2026 at 4:08 PM
This story brought me back to Kara, one of the mothers in my book, There Is No Place for Us. She was homeless with her four kids while driving for DoorDash. They had to pee in bottles so bathroom stops wouldn't make her late.
After gas, she earned $6.50 an hour—75 cents less than the minimum wage.
After gas, she earned $6.50 an hour—75 cents less than the minimum wage.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
“Y’all are going to need a bigger hospital.”
Already burdened by petrochemical plants, Louisiana is facing a wave of gas-powered AI data centers—and their pollution.
Dorothy Slater, an oncology nurse, writes for @dissentmag.bsky.social about nursing her patients at the frontier of AI buildout.
Already burdened by petrochemical plants, Louisiana is facing a wave of gas-powered AI data centers—and their pollution.
Dorothy Slater, an oncology nurse, writes for @dissentmag.bsky.social about nursing her patients at the frontier of AI buildout.
Death by Data Centers - Dissent Magazine
I’m an oncology nurse in Louisiana’s Cancer Alley. My patients and I breathe the same polluted air, and we can’t afford the toxic exposure from the gas-fired plants set to power the state’s proposed A...
dissentmagazine.org
September 25, 2026 at 2:35 PM
“Y’all are going to need a bigger hospital.”
Already burdened by petrochemical plants, Louisiana is facing a wave of gas-powered AI data centers—and their pollution.
Dorothy Slater, an oncology nurse, writes for @dissentmag.bsky.social about nursing her patients at the frontier of AI buildout.
Already burdened by petrochemical plants, Louisiana is facing a wave of gas-powered AI data centers—and their pollution.
Dorothy Slater, an oncology nurse, writes for @dissentmag.bsky.social about nursing her patients at the frontier of AI buildout.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
A 36-year-old Costa Rican man whose family says he complained of not receiving proper care for his diabetes is the third detainee in less than six months to die at a U.S.
Costa Rican man complained of lack of care for diabetes before his death in ICE custody, family says
A 36-year-old Costa Rican man whose family says he complained of not receiving proper care for his diabetes is the third detainee in less than six months to die at a U.S.
bit.ly
September 23, 2026 at 4:30 AM
A 36-year-old Costa Rican man whose family says he complained of not receiving proper care for his diabetes is the third detainee in less than six months to die at a U.S.
📆 see you there.
Registration for The People's AI Assembly is live!
On Oct 19 with @moreperfectunion.bsky.social, we’re bringing together leading organizers, cultural figures, and policy leaders shaping the frontlines of AI. It’s time to build a tech movement for us!
Join us in NYC: bit.ly/ai-assembly
On Oct 19 with @moreperfectunion.bsky.social, we’re bringing together leading organizers, cultural figures, and policy leaders shaping the frontlines of AI. It’s time to build a tech movement for us!
Join us in NYC: bit.ly/ai-assembly
September 23, 2026 at 5:29 PM
📆 see you there.
Last night, Seattle became the 1st US city to ban algorithmic pricing for groceries. It's the strongest ban yet & I couldn't be prouder to have helped a wee bit. A year ago, I was putting together PPTs to guide volunteers through a messy experiment. Never did I think we'd have a ban 12 months later.
At the Seattle City Council, @katiejwells.bsky.social explained what happens to fair pricing when retailers adopt AI-powered algorithms. She shared why it is so hard to document this practice and highlighted @moreperfectunion.bsky.social’s grocery pricing investigation, which did just that.
September 23, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Last night, Seattle became the 1st US city to ban algorithmic pricing for groceries. It's the strongest ban yet & I couldn't be prouder to have helped a wee bit. A year ago, I was putting together PPTs to guide volunteers through a messy experiment. Never did I think we'd have a ban 12 months later.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
A Venezuelan DoorDash driver shot by an ICE officer in Austin, Texas, said he is now in detention but still has the bullet in his back.
https://www.washingtonsun.com/immigration/ice-agent-shooting-austin-texas
https://www.washingtonsun.com/immigration/ice-agent-shooting-austin-texas
Venezuelan DoorDash Driver Recounts Being Shot by an ICE Officer
“I was telling him it hurt a lot, that I couldn't move,” Wilber Rafael Garces Perez said during a press conference from detention.
www.washingtonsun.com
September 21, 2026 at 8:55 PM
A Venezuelan DoorDash driver shot by an ICE officer in Austin, Texas, said he is now in detention but still has the bullet in his back.
https://www.washingtonsun.com/immigration/ice-agent-shooting-austin-texas
https://www.washingtonsun.com/immigration/ice-agent-shooting-austin-texas
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
DoorDash has ripped off more than 260,000 NYC delivery workers. We’re making them pay $131.5 million — the largest worker settlement in City history.
This is New York, where hard work pays and greed will cost you.
This is New York, where hard work pays and greed will cost you.
September 22, 2026 at 6:46 PM
DoorDash has ripped off more than 260,000 NYC delivery workers. We’re making them pay $131.5 million — the largest worker settlement in City history.
This is New York, where hard work pays and greed will cost you.
This is New York, where hard work pays and greed will cost you.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
ICE arrests surge in New Bedford area; immigrants warned to stay home - The New Bedford Light
Gov. Maura Healey called on ICE to release more information after at least 10 arrests Monday and more Tuesday morning. Mayor Jon Mitchell criticized ICE “overreach.”
newbedfordlight.org
September 23, 2026 at 12:34 PM
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
NEW: @apnews.com confirms that ICE has begun electronically "disappearing" people in the agency's custody who have final orders of removal.
As of last week, anyone jailed by ICE with a final order of removal will NOT appear in the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, making them effectively vanish.
As of last week, anyone jailed by ICE with a final order of removal will NOT appear in the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, making them effectively vanish.
September 21, 2026 at 4:57 PM
NEW: @apnews.com confirms that ICE has begun electronically "disappearing" people in the agency's custody who have final orders of removal.
As of last week, anyone jailed by ICE with a final order of removal will NOT appear in the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, making them effectively vanish.
As of last week, anyone jailed by ICE with a final order of removal will NOT appear in the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, making them effectively vanish.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
Last week, Ohio State students violated the university’s absurd ban on chalking to protest having a weapons manufacturer as the official sponsor of our athletic department. Faculty from @osuaaup.bsky.social were there to support students’ rights to free speech, which is plainly under attack.
Protestors chalk on campus against Ohio State’s partnership with Anduril and the university chalk ban
Colors covered the Thompson statue and bricks around it after protestors chalked phrases like “Democracy now,” “F*** Anduril” and “Divest now” to protest against the university’s partnership with Andu...
www.thelantern.com
September 22, 2026 at 1:07 AM
Last week, Ohio State students violated the university’s absurd ban on chalking to protest having a weapons manufacturer as the official sponsor of our athletic department. Faculty from @osuaaup.bsky.social were there to support students’ rights to free speech, which is plainly under attack.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
How can NYC protect New Yorkers as AI reshapes the economy?
Reserve your seat for our talk with @hellodcwp.bsky.social, Commissioner @saalevine.bsky.social, and writer @edwardongwesojr.com Sept. 30 3:30–5 PM
Co-sponsored by the CUNY Law Burns Program, @cplusc.bsky.social, @rooseveltinstitute.org
Reserve your seat for our talk with @hellodcwp.bsky.social, Commissioner @saalevine.bsky.social, and writer @edwardongwesojr.com Sept. 30 3:30–5 PM
Co-sponsored by the CUNY Law Burns Program, @cplusc.bsky.social, @rooseveltinstitute.org
Governing AI for Workers and Consumers: NYC's Public Approach
Dive into what NYC can do to advance affordability for working families during the rise of AI and corporate consolidation.
governing-ai-for-NYC-workers-and-consumers.eventbrite.com
September 18, 2026 at 3:41 PM
How can NYC protect New Yorkers as AI reshapes the economy?
Reserve your seat for our talk with @hellodcwp.bsky.social, Commissioner @saalevine.bsky.social, and writer @edwardongwesojr.com Sept. 30 3:30–5 PM
Co-sponsored by the CUNY Law Burns Program, @cplusc.bsky.social, @rooseveltinstitute.org
Reserve your seat for our talk with @hellodcwp.bsky.social, Commissioner @saalevine.bsky.social, and writer @edwardongwesojr.com Sept. 30 3:30–5 PM
Co-sponsored by the CUNY Law Burns Program, @cplusc.bsky.social, @rooseveltinstitute.org
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
AI is the largest theft of labor in history, but the case doesn't go far enough -- AI steals not only from journalists and researchers but from authors throughout history, from policymakers and legal writers, from photographers and artists in every medium.
September 18, 2026 at 12:32 PM
AI is the largest theft of labor in history, but the case doesn't go far enough -- AI steals not only from journalists and researchers but from authors throughout history, from policymakers and legal writers, from photographers and artists in every medium.
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
NEW @businessweektr.bsky.social investigation: Crafting America’s Favorite Countertops Is Killing Workers
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Artificial stone manufacturers want Congress to shut down silicosis lawsuits seeking billions. Confidential company records undermine industry's safety claims
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Artificial stone manufacturers want Congress to shut down silicosis lawsuits seeking billions. Confidential company records undermine industry's safety claims
‘Death Sentences:’ Crafting America’s Favorite Countertops Is Killing Workers
Hundreds of workers who’ve contracted silicosis are suing the artificial stone industry for billions. While California weighs a ban on fabricating the product, the manufacturers’ defenders in Congress...
www.bloomberg.com
September 14, 2026 at 9:02 PM
NEW @businessweektr.bsky.social investigation: Crafting America’s Favorite Countertops Is Killing Workers
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Artificial stone manufacturers want Congress to shut down silicosis lawsuits seeking billions. Confidential company records undermine industry's safety claims
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Artificial stone manufacturers want Congress to shut down silicosis lawsuits seeking billions. Confidential company records undermine industry's safety claims
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
“The system learns from the injuries it helps to create.”
You really must read this. It’s disgusting to realise there are people hellbent now on making this the reality for all of us.
(Not “all” of us. Just the 99% whose toil is siphoned to the parasitic rich.)
dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
You really must read this. It’s disgusting to realise there are people hellbent now on making this the reality for all of us.
(Not “all” of us. Just the 99% whose toil is siphoned to the parasitic rich.)
dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
Life Under the Algorithm - Dissent Magazine
Algorithmic wages and prices don’t just squeeze workers in the present. They make them predictably poor into the future.
dissentmagazine.org
September 13, 2026 at 12:06 AM
“The system learns from the injuries it helps to create.”
You really must read this. It’s disgusting to realise there are people hellbent now on making this the reality for all of us.
(Not “all” of us. Just the 99% whose toil is siphoned to the parasitic rich.)
dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
You really must read this. It’s disgusting to realise there are people hellbent now on making this the reality for all of us.
(Not “all” of us. Just the 99% whose toil is siphoned to the parasitic rich.)
dissentmagazine.org/article/algo...
Reposted by Katie J. Wells
"Her wage has been adjusted toward what she is predicted to accept. The price of necessities has been adjusted toward what she is predicted to tolerate. The result is not simply precarity, but an iterative constraint." @veenadubal.bsky.social & @katiejwells.bsky.social for @dissentmag.bsky.social
September 11, 2026 at 2:06 PM
"Her wage has been adjusted toward what she is predicted to accept. The price of necessities has been adjusted toward what she is predicted to tolerate. The result is not simply precarity, but an iterative constraint." @veenadubal.bsky.social & @katiejwells.bsky.social for @dissentmag.bsky.social