No steering wheel, no pedals, no problem. Zoox announced Wednesday that it’s partnering with Uber to make its robotaxis available on the ride-hailing company’s app in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, pending US government approval.
The multiyear partnership, announced by Zoox and Uber on Wednesday, would enable Uber customers to get rides on Zoox robotaxis in Vegas this summer and in LA in 2027. After the partnership launches, the app will match riders with robotaxis on eligible trips, Uber said in a statement. Zoox will also offer rides on its robotaxis through its own app, so customers can use either the Uber or Zoox app to ride in the vehicles.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi called Zoox an “ideal partner” in a statement.
“The Zoox robotaxi is unlike any other vehicle on the planet — it was purpose-built from the ground up to deliver an extraordinary experience,” Khosrowshahi said. “Zoox’s commitment to safety and their advanced autonomous driving technology make them an ideal partner. We’re thrilled to work together to introduce more riders to the future of mobility.”
Zoox, founded in 2014 and acquired by Amazon in 2020, currently offers free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco during its demonstration phase of service. The company said its robotaxis have logged more than 1 million miles for more than 300,000 riders.
Zoox is also conducting tests in six other cities — Seattle, Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Washington, DC, and Austin, Texas — and announced earlier this week that Dallas and Phoenix are next. Only people in San Francisco and Las Vegas can currently get test rides through the Zoox app.
“We’re taking a measured, step-by-step approach by starting small, learning quickly, and scaling responsibly,” Zoox said in its announcement Wednesday. “This partnership with Uber will mirror that approach, beginning with a controlled deployment with the potential to expand as we refine our operations, technology, and customer experience.”
Watch this: This Robotaxi Looks and Drives Like No Car You’ve Ever Seen Before
No steering wheel
The Zoox is a fully autonomous vehicle that can carry up to four passengers (PDF). It has no steering wheel, no accelerator or brake pedals, and is bidirectional, meaning it can go forward and reverse by simply switching which end of the car is considered the front. There are touchscreens and emergency call buttons. Zoox had early issues with erratic braking that caused injuries and a crash, but addressed the issue through software updates during the ensuing investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
CNET’s Abrar Al-Heeti caught a ride in a Zoox in Las Vegas. She said she felt “oddly at ease as I watch a stream of cars, chain restaurants and desert landscape flash past the windows.”
Before it can start making money on its robotaxi rides, Zoox must get an exemption from the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. NHTSA is now accepting public comments on Zoox’s application for the exemption — you can post a comment here until April 10.
Zoox is seeking eight federal vehicle safety exemptions, including from rules requiring windshield wipers and windshield defrosting systems, TechCrunch reported.
Zoox offers free rides during its public-testing phase in San Francisco and Las Vegas.
Waymo is currently the main player in the US robotaxi market, with fully autonomous service in 10 US cities. But several other companies are looking to ramp up their self-driving presence this year, including Zoox, Tesla and Uber. That market expansion aligns with a Goldman Sachs forecast that more than 35,000 robotaxis will operate in the US in 2030, up from 1,500 currently. That would represent 8% of the rideshare market, with traditional human-driven rideshare comprising the other 92%.
Uber has partnerships with 25 other robotaxi services around the world, primarily Waymo — you can use the Uber app to get Waymo rides in Atlanta and Austin — and China’s Baidu, which will be testing self-driving rides in London this year.
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