Well, if you take Uber at its word (which I know is difficult) that it was only being used to render maps on the Watch, it doesn't seem like that big a deal to me.
If it's such a non-issue, just ask for the permission! That's what these granular permissions are for. To allow the OS to lock down features to stop naughty apps being naughty but still allow apps we want to have them to do their business.
Sneaking around like this only begs the question: what else aren't they telling you?
Sneaking around like this only begs the question: what else aren't they telling you?