Zoox robotaxis arrive in San Francisco

Zoox, the company owned by Amazon, is now present in San Francisco and will soon welcome the general public

These electric mini-buses are driverless and transport humans from point A to point B. No real novelty for San Francisco residents except maybe the design and capacity of the vehicle. Waymo already has its fleet of driverless electric cars roaming the hilly streets of Silicon Valley. Tesla also has this as a medium-term goal, but today, it is Zoox that is operating its first vehicles in the fourth-largest city in California.

The company owned by Amazon has launched its electric minibus concept. This sci-fi film-style vehicle opens via sliding doors and has four seats. It differs from other companies like Waymo and Tesla’s concept in that they do not rely on existing electric car models. Zoox creates its minivan models exclusively to serve as autonomous shuttles.

Soon, everyone will be able to ride in a Zoox robotaxi

Until now, Zoox had tested its robotaxi in several cities such as Las Vegas or Foster City. But although the driving is autonomous, a driver was always present to limit risks and ensure passenger safety. Zoox now confirms that its vehicles have passed all tests and that they can start patrolling the streets of San Francisco.

For the moment, trips are reserved for company employees as in Las Vegas. In fact, the City of Sin is ahead in the procedures with Zoox. The Robotaxis cover a larger area and the city is expected to be the first to allow the general public to use the Zoox app. Currently, in both cities, only company employees can take the robotaxis.

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