Not pay walled:

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/uber-to-start-recording...

https://www.inquirer.com/business/technology/uber-audio-reco...

A live uber mic in every car now... Yeah, no thanks.

I'm curious on wire tap laws, and how they are getting around this.

I'm guessing they'll have a confirmation of acceptance prior to confirming your ride. In two-party consent states (like CA) it's a notification/consent thing, so as long as they tell you you're being recorded and you consent to it, it's legal. But yeah, I'll pass on this as well.

Sounds useful in some cases, but the wording of their PR indicates they want to make this the default, instead of opt-in. The list of places where one may have a private conversation is growing thin.