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A New York Times article Thursday highlighted alucrative side hustlethat is symbolic of the meter we live in : gambling algorithms to garner money . In this sheath , folks figured out they could maximise the payout from Lyft ’s Citi Bike“Bike Angels ” programby taking vantage of a company algorithm used to assemble its supply - and - demand need .
The pattern of “ place flipping ” — when one or more cycle angels move docked Citi wheel to a nearby empty place , waited 15 minutes and then moved them back — was quashed over the summer , accord to Lyft . The company sent an electronic mail to the offenders remind them that pull in Bike Angel points through station flipping went against the spirit of the broadcast . “ Continued instances of station flip could lead in removal from the Bike Angels program , ” the e-mail show .
The pattern lasted long enough , however , for some bike angels to earn thousands of dollars every month .
