Zoox Inc. is an Amazon-owned startup company that focuses on autonomous vehicles. Recently, it has finished its first ever trip with Zoox’s Robotaxi in the midst of tech crisis. Robotaxi is a self-driving vehicle that requires absolutely human controls which might be the future of transportation. Previously, Amazon acquired Zoox in 2020 and supported the startup financially and technologically.
Source: Zoox
Zoox’s foundation dated back to 2014 by Tim Kentley-Klay and Jesse Levinson. Ever since, it has developed autonomous vehicles which are driverless and automatic. Seeing the huge potentials of the company, the tech giant successfully merged Zoox as a subsidiary. Amazon is among one of the biggest companies in the entire world and has tried as many fields as possible, even in entertainment.
Source: Zoox
The subsidiary’s targeted market is the robo-taxi. Robo-taxi is also known as driverless taxi or self-driving taxi is a mobility service that allows passengers to travel without a physical, flesh-and-blood taxi driver. The vehicle runs automatically and there are several other features to pick up and drop off passengers. Basically, it is the Tesla of public transportation. Even though this service is still under development, the potential is huge because public transportation is essential in almost every country. Especially, the high demand for taxis in big cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego seems like a huge opportunity for its success in the future.
Recently, the California Department of Motor Vehicles has approved Zoox and Amazon’s public testing on the product. Until then, these robo-taxis are allowed to run on public roads with actual passengers on them. The testers and volunteers are also the staff at this Amazon-owned company who got the chance to go between its two office buildings in Foster City, California. By that, this trip is claimed to be the very first trip by a completely autonomous vehicle with passengers and without any human control. It is a remarkable milestone in the tech industry, generally, and in the development of Amazon and Zoox.
Source: Zoox
The vehicle might carry up to 4 passengers and run as fast as 35 miles per hour. Also, the traditional controlling system includes controls and pedals are non-existent. Therefore, it is even more impressive than the regular auto vehicles that we have been familiar with. In the future, Zoox still has a lot more development and improvement to create so that these robotaxis are publicly recognized and experienced by the majority. Let’s look forward to its new movements in the future. Certainly, if they succeed, the world will be changed amazingly once again.