Welcome to Axis ProRata, a podcast that takes just 10 minutes to get you smarter on the collision of tech business and politics.

I'm Dan Premack. On today's show, what Super Bowl ads taught us about big tech and the fallout over President Trump's executive time.

But first, all hail breaks loose with Uber and Lyft drivers. Last week, dozens of Los Angeles ride hail drivers

protested outside the local office of California Governor Gavin Newsom, delivering what they

called a driver's bill of rights. It's reminiscent of what we've seen elsewhere in the country,

demand that drivers get a bigger cut of rider fees and more transparency and protections

around when drivers are kicked off

or suspended from the platforms.

There's also nascent interest in unionizing drivers nationwide.

Now to be sure, this plays into a much broader political movement surrounding workers'

rights and income inequality, particularly from the Democratic Party's insurgent progressive

flank.

And there has been some

legislative action taken, such as what basically amounts to a minimum wage for drivers in New York City.

It also comes just as Uber and Lyft are preparing to become publicly traded companies via IPOs,

most likely before this summer.

Now, neither company is overall profitable, and the Los Angeles driver demands would effectively have lifts per ride revenue and cut Uber's by 60%.

The bottom line is that gig economy workers have become such an established part of America's labor market that they're beginning to flex their muscles.

At the same time, though, such flexing could cause

companies like Uber to accelerate their own development of technologies like autonomous driving,

which would leave these same drivers out in the cold. In 15 seconds, we'll go deeper with an organizer

of those Los Angeles protests. But first, this. Axios chief technology correspondent,

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