Zoox expands robotaxi service to Austin and Miami

Zoox is preparing to introduce its purpose-built robotaxis in Austin, Texas, and Miami, Florida, following nearly two years of testing autonomous vehicles in both cities. The company announced on Tuesday that it plans to begin offering rides in these locations later this year through its early-rider program.

Alongside this expansion, Zoox revealed that it is increasing its service coverage in San Francisco and Las Vegas. In San Francisco, the service area will expand fourfold, with a particular focus on the eastern portion of the city for early-rider program participants.

In Las Vegas, where users can already access free rides through the Zoox app, the company is expanding its list of destinations. New locations include The Sphere, T-Mobile Arena, and the Las Vegas Convention Centre. Zoox currently provides pickup and drop-off services at several hotels and attractions, including Area15, Topgolf, Fashion Show Las Vegas, Luxor, Resorts World, and the Wynn. The company also stated that it will begin testing its robotaxis at the Las Vegas airport as part of preparations for future service expansion.

At present, Zoox can offer free rides only because federal regulations restrict commercial deployment. However, the company is working to overcome these limitations.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has recently begun collecting public feedback on Zoox’s application for exemptions from certain Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. These exemptions are necessary for the company to move forward with offering paid rides as part of its commercial service.

Zoox has expressed confidence that it will secure these approvals and earlier this month announced a partnership with Uber, which will integrate Zoox robotaxis into the ride-hailing platform’s network in Las Vegas later this year.

The company also shared operational milestones, stating that its robotaxis have completed nearly two million autonomous miles and transported more than 350,000 riders so far. Feedback gathered from users has led to the introduction of new features, including Bluetooth audio connectivity, branded as “ZooxCast,” and a “Find My Zoox” feature designed to help riders locate their vehicle in busy environments.

Although Zoox, which Amazon owns, is not expanding at the same pace as Alphabet-owned Waymo — which plans to launch commercial services in 20 additional cities worldwide this year — the company continues to broaden its footprint. It has recently begun mapping roads in Dallas and Phoenix in preparation for future testing and is already conducting trials in Washington, D.C., Seattle, Los Angeles, and Atlanta.