The Hidden Cost of Everything
I ordered a pizza. Normally I pick it up. But I was tired, so I had it delivered.
The delivery driver thanked me profusely when I tipped in cash. Then she texted again to say thanks—turns out she was working for DoorDash. I didn’t order from DoorDash. I ordered directly from a local shop. But the shop outsourced delivery to a third-party system without saying so.
This bothered me. Not because I didn’t want to use DoorDash, but because I had no idea they were part of the transaction. There was no transparency. No consent. No way for me to know how the driver was being paid—or whether they’d see a dime of the money I tipped online.
That’s why I tipped in cash. And clearly, that made a difference to the driver.
This isn’t just a story about pizza. It’s a reflection on how consequence design is ignored in everyday economic interfaces. There's an entire layer of subcontracted, low-visibility infrastructure reshaping how service work happens—and it’s mostly invisible to users.
Technologists love the idea of “frictionless” experiences. But who absorbs the friction?
The answer is often the gig worker, the underpaid courier, the invisible laborer who makes the convenience possible. While product teams enjoy six-figure salaries and equity stakes, those carrying out the service are a car accident away from financial ruin.
Just because someone isn’t your neighbor doesn’t mean you shouldn’t care about the systems they’re subjected to. And when we run our user interviews—who are we designing for, really?