People are leaving a lot of weird stuff in their robotaxis

A unicorn Beanie Baby. A 15-pound green bowling ball. A pair of dentures. These are just some of the items left behind in robotaxis in the past year, according to Uber’s annual Lost and Found Index . For the first time, the company is expanding its annual of accounting of things forgotten in Uber vehicles to include self-driving cars because, for the first time, Uber has enough self-driving cars on its platform to matter. Uber doesn’t deploy its own robotaxis, but in the last few years it’s become a clearinghouse for driverless car companies that want access to Uber’s millions of customers. Here in the US, that includes Waymo (in Austin and Atlanta), Motional (Las Vegas), and Avride (Dallas). And while robotaxis only account for less than 1 percent of all of Uber’s trips, it’s enough to earn inclusion in the Lost and Found Index. One thing’s clear: Regardless of whether it’s a human or a robot controlling the vehicle, riders will always leave stuff behind. The most common items are also the most predictable: phones. Uber says the forgotten phones, from iPhones to flip phones, Androids to Galaxys, are the most commonly left-behind items. Other things frequently forgotten include wallets, keys, headphones, glasses, driver’s licenses, and passports. …