Last week Betterment and Uber announced a partnership to offer Betterment individual retirement accounts (IRAs) to Uber drivers. The program is already available to drivers in four cities—Boston, Chicago, New Jersey and Seattle—via the Uber app.

Who Are These Guys?

Betterment is a robo-advisor. The technical definition of a robo-advisor (robo-adviser) according to investopedia.com is: “an online wealth management service that provides automated, algorithm-based portfolio management advice without the use of human financial planners.”

Basically, Betterment has an online platform and app that allows you to save for retirement or other goals by investing in exchange traded funds (ETFs). To get started you answer a few questions that Betterment’s computer system (aka, automated algorithm) analyzes and then chooses your investment options. You don’t have to, nor could you if you wanted to, choose your own investment funds. Its purpose is to automate the investment choosing and saving process for people who don’t want to or feel they cannot make these decisions alone.

And Uber (originally UberCab) is an app-based ride hailing service whose drivers are independent contractors. The app hit the market in 2010.

A Match Made In Tech Heaven

I’m not surprised by this new partnership—Betterment and Uber have a lot in common. They are both successful tech start-ups that went up against well-established industries—financial advisors and taxicabs, respectively. They both rely on technology to deliver their products in a way their traditional competitors never did. They both emerged during the Great Recession of 2008 but hit the ground running in 2010-2011. They enjoy a lot of media attention and support from venture capitalists. And, increasingly, they market their products to businesses as an employee benefit.

Betterment founded Betterment for Business to offer 401(k) plans to small businesses. Uber has several partnerships with businesses:

Uber for Business – Businesses can set up an account to provide rides for their employees

UberCENTRAL – Businesses can set up an account to pay for rides for their customers

UberPOOL – New York City employees enrolled in a WageWorks commuter flex program can use their commuter benefits account to pay for rides with pre-tax dollars

What Are These Guys Really Up To?

It’s easy to make too much of the similarities between Betterment and Uber. For all the hype about how start-ups are changing the tech world, they also tend to copy what they see others doing successfully or not. So similarities aside, what do Betterment and Uber really want to accomplish with this partnership. Are they sincerely committed to helping freelancers save for retirement and other life events, or are they simply casting a wide net to impress investors? There is speculation that Betterment is looking to go public and this could just be them telling potential investors that they are going after a large untapped market.

As much as I personally admire Betterment’s products—I’ve been a customer for many years—part of me questions their sincerity. If their first venture into servicing the gig economy’s savings needs is an icon on an Uber app, they are showing they don’t know much about the average freelancer. The average freelancer—drivers, maids, hairstylists, landscapers and writers need a better introduction to retirement saving options than an app and a phone number. Still, I’m holding out judgment until I learn more about Betterment and Uber’s IRA communication strategy. In the meantime, I have a few suggestions but I’ll save that for another day.

Tags: retirement accounts, IRA, Betterment , Uber